A Darker Shade of Love
by Alonein-Darkness7
Summary: Starts after 'Masks' and goes through the entire series. What if Slade and Robin's relationship is more than it seems? During the day they fight, but at night there's something more between them? Better than this bad summary. SladeRobin and later RobinRed
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** SladeRobin (Sladin) in the beginning with RobinRed X in future chapters  
**Chapter Summary: **Robin, tired from being yelled at all day and having his plan that he'd worked so hard on for so long blown up in his face, really just wants to go to sleep and pray that tomorrow will be better. What he gets is a phone call from Slade and the start of something very new and unexpected.

**A.N. **I bet a lot of you are going to be yelling at me for starting a new story when I have so many other stories that I should be finishing first. Well, I'd hate to blame the plot bunnies, but I have two other new stories waiting to be edited and posted as well. Anyways, this fic will start off Sladin but will turn and end as a RedRobin simply because--even though I love Sladin so much--I feel like RedRobin doesn't have as much love as this awesome pairing deserves. Besides, since Red X and Robin are closer to age--I'm guessing--I think that they're more capable of having a fluffy story.

Now then, this story takes place after season one's episode 'Masks'. Also, throughout the story I'll explain how a Sladin scene could have easily been placed in every episode of Teen Titans that had Slade in it. Trust me, after this story is done, you guys will learn how crazy I really am. Enjoy and please review to tell me what you think!

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**Chapter One**

Only the Beginning

As the papers strewn around him all started to blur together, Robin ran his hand through his spiked hair and decided to call it a night. Sighing, Robin laid on his bed and placed his hands over his face. It had been a long day—heck, week—and yet he still had nothing on the most dangerous villain known in Jump City; Slade. Though, the man obviously could see through him easily like he was predictable.

Why did the man seem so appealing to him? Robin had no idea, but he wanted to find out, he wanted to find out everything about Slade and he wanted to bring the man to justice. Only he barely had anything on the man. All he really knew was that Slade wanted to destroy Jump City, he apparently had enough power in the villainous world to hire members of H.I.V.E to do his dirty work, and he knew more about Robin than the Boy Wonder had thought, also better than his friends knew him. After all, Slade had known all along that he was Red X. His friends hadn't even caught on until Starfire had started to snoop around in his workroom.

Robin looked out of his window at the quarter moon and couldn't help but think of his mentor, Batman. Would Batman have already figured out who Slade was? Would he have been able to already take down the masked foe? Would he be disappointed in what Robin had done just like all of his friends were? Probably.

Groaning, Robin turned on his stomach and buried his face into his pillow. All he wanted now was to go to sleep. He had gone the past couple of nights without sleep for numerous reasons; one being the guilt of becoming Red X and another being that he forced himself to stay awake while he yelled at himself. He had enough of people yelling at him for one day though. His plans were foiled and now he was stuck going back to the beginning; spending endless hours of just researching and waiting for Slade to make the next move so he could, again, attempt to stop him.

Just as he was beginning to drift to sleep, his communicator started going off. Angrily pulling it out of his pocket, Robin didn't even look at the tiny screen as he lifted his head from his pillow and groaned at the device.

"What do you want?" He shouted angrily. There wasn't an immediate response and that bothered him even more. As he finally looked at who had contacted him, ready to give a piece of his mind for calling at such an absurd hour and not having a dire problem, his jaw drop slightly and his eyes widen. It was Slade.

"Pardon me, Robin; I seemed to have caught you in a bad mood." Robin couldn't even tell if Slade was mocking him or not. He couldn't even figure out the man's voice patterns, how could he expect to figure everything else out about the man? "I can call back later. Get some rest so you won't be as irritable."

"Why are you calling me, Slade?" Robin sat up and glared at the tiny screen; indicating that he wanted to talk to Slade now and not later. He knew he wouldn't have been able to fall back to sleep anyways, knowing that Slade could hack into their communicators.

"It's not to criticize you or brag about how I foiled your little plan, if that's what you think, Robin. In fact, it's quite the contrary. I must say that I'm rather impressed by your meritorious idea, though I doubt your friends saw the brilliance behind it like I did." Slade's eye glimmered for a moment before Robin growled. He heard the innuendo towards his friend louder than the compliment.

"I don't care about what you thought of my plan. If you don't have any new threat that you want to tell me about or you don't want to give yourself up, then I suggest you call someone else because I don't want to talk to you." Robin declared annoyingly.

"I'm disappointed that you feel that way, petulant Robin, because I have called simply to talk to you." He paused. "And to offer you a chance to get to know me better. After all, if you don't know me, how can you possibly hope to stop me?"

Robin's eyes widened for a moment before he controlled himself again and narrowed his eyes once more at the screen. "Why would you do anything that would help me bring you down?" Robin asked as he stared at Slade, unconvinced.

"You have good reason to be skeptical of my offer and I would have been dissatisfied if you hadn't been. But you see, the more you get to learn about me, the more I get to learn about you." Slade explained.

"It seems like you already know enough about me." Robin replied bitterly. He had no intentions in sharing his personal life with any madman. Especially since Slade knew too much about him, in Robin's opinion.

"True, I do know plenty about you but there's always room to learn more. Besides," Slade's eye left Robin for a moment to glance to the side. Robin's interest perked up as Slade nodded to whatever—or whomever—he was looking at.

Returning his gaze back to Robin, Slade picked up on the topic at hand. "Even though I know that you're better than your team, I still don't know why you bother to stay with them and let them hold you back from reaching your potential."

"It's something called friendship." Robin's eyes narrowed. "I'm not surprised you don't know what it is."

"Well, I'd love to learn more about your friendship and I'm sure it goes without saying that you'd love to learn more about me in general. So, how about we meet and chat, face to face?" Slade inquired.

"No thanks, I'm not interested in falling for anymore traps tonight. Call me again tomorrow and the other Titans and I will meet up with you though. We'll all gladly talk with you then; I think my team has a lot to say to you but I hope you don't mind if their actions speak a bit louder than their words." Robin couldn't believe the gull of that man. How stupid did Slade think he was?

Slade made a little humming noise that sounded like he was disappointed in Robin's decision. "I'm not interested in meeting with your little friends, Robin; they're not as interesting as you are." Robin didn't respond—how could he—and after a short hiatus of silence Slade continued. "As much fun as it is to talk to you like this, I find a better delight talking in person to you."

"How would you know that? We've yet to meet. Or did you forget that I've only met with your robot doppelganger?" Robin briefly glanced to the mask lying on the floor around the newspaper clippings and notes. He had brought all of the Slade evidence from his workroom to his bedroom so he could work without being interrupted by more complaints from the other Titans. They never went into his room. But they always barged into his workroom and often stared at the wall of newspaper clippings.

"We've met before, Robin, though it was a brief moment and we weren't really properly introduced. But if you'd like to meet me, in the flesh, then I suggest you come to the docks in an hour." Slade suggested in a slightly jaded tone.

Robin looked at the digital clock on his bed-side table. "It's one in the morning." He stated. "Do you really think I'd go to the docks to meet you while all of my friends are asleep? I'm not falling for this trap, Slade, and I've wasted enough time on you for one day already."

Robin moved his hands to close his communicator but stopped as Slade spoke up again. "Good night, Richard."

Freezing on the spot, Robin's eyes widened and he stared unbelievingly at Slade. "What did you say?"

"I wished you a good night." Slade purred as he knew that he had Robin exactly where he wanted him. The little bird has spotted the shiny window, now it was only a matter of time before he would fly into it and break his wings.

"What did you call me?" Robin's voice dropped low as he spat out the question through clenched teeth.

"If you want to find out, then I'll see you at Pier 41." Slade ended the transmission and Robin sat in the dark as he thought. It had to be a trap, he knew it, but if Slade had really just called him by his first name then he had to meet the man. If the Titans were awake, he knew they would try to dissuade him from going by pointing out that the man had already fooled him once. But Robin feared that he had really screwed up and the cost was his and Bruce's secret. Fool him once, shame on Slade, fool him twice, shame on him.

At ten minutes until two, he dashed out of the Tower on his R-cycle and made it to the docks just as it turned one. He was just thankful that the docks were so close to the Tower or else he wouldn't have had made it on time. He always tried to be punctual, especially when he was meeting with a super villain that could possibly know his identity and pose a bigger threat than thought.

Standing in front of Pier 41, Robin shivered a bit from the cold air rushing in from the water. He was tired and cold and being forced to meet with a madman; his day just kept getting worse and worse. Keeping his attention on full alert and listening for any sounds, he kept his hand hovering over his belt, to pull out his bo-staff at any time needed. He felt like it would be needed soon.

"You really should dress warmer." A voice from behind him in the shadows announced Slade's presence.

Robin spun around and tried to settle his startled heart as he brought out his bo-staff and held it at the ready. Slade ignored the boy's ready-to-fight position. "I suppose you do dress better than you use to though." Robin growled. Slade must have been referring to his green shorts that he wore along time ago. Alright, four years ago when he was still twelve, but not even the Titans knew that. And they never would if Robin had a say in it.

"Alright, so you know even more about me then you've let on. What do you want?" Robin hissed as he kept his guard up. He knew better than to give a foe any opportunity to strike.

"Simply to get to know you better, Robin; I have the feeling we could become quite the couple." Slade purred as he folded his hands behind him. Robin stared at the man and really took him in. He was exactly like his robot copy and Robin wouldn't have been surprised if it was just another replica.

Slade shrugged his shoulders lazily. "It's going to be a while before I finish saying everything I want to for tonight. You might decide to sit on one of the many empty crates around here later." Slade vaguely waved his hand to indicate the multiple crates around the room. Some of the boxes were bigger than Robin while others were probably the size of his head.

"Who said that I was going to stay long? As soon as I find out what I want to know, then I'm out of here." Just as Robin spoke, Slade pressed a button on his wrist and the door to the warehouse slammed shut, causing everything to go black. Robin wasn't too worried, his built in night vision lenses would start working in a minute.

Dim lights, but bright enough to cast a few shadows, flickered to life above the rafters of the building. Robin found himself a foot away from Slade and boggled at how silent the man was. How Slade had managed to move so fast also astounded Robin as he took a few staggering steps away from the intimidating man.

"Who said that I would let you leave before I was finished talking to you?" Slade asked as he loomed over the boy and took a step forward, and then some, for every one Robin took back. Even when Robin was backed into the door, Slade continued to advance until he was a mere inch from the boy.

"Stay away from me." It didn't sound quite as intimidating as Robin would have liked, but how could he intimidate the man? Slade looked to be over six feet tall easily. But he reminded himself that the bigger they were the harder they fell. Besides, he often used his opponent's size against them in battles.

He finally collected himself as his fight instincts kicked in for his flight ones. He swung his bo-staff, aiming for Slade's face, but found it near impossible to even move his weapon as Slade was holding onto it as well and when had that happened? The man seriously seemed to move on the Flash's level when he wanted to.

"I only want to talk, Robin. I have no intentions of hurting you, child." Slade kept one hand firmly on Robin's bo-staff, still restraining Robin from using it, and reached out to rest his other gloved hand on Robin's face. The boy wasn't aware of the special coating on Slade's gloves that night. And that was exactly what Slade had planned.

Robin could only freeze once more that night and simply stare into Slade's lonely eye. He felt the heat from Slade's hand through the glove and he shuddered as Slade's fingers ran back through his hair. "I've been watching you for such a long time, Robin, but you only started to notice me once I endangered _your_ city." Slade accented 'your' to almost make it seem like Slade was mocking him. "I suppose that's the only way to keep your attention as well."

The man's voice sounded spiteful yet gentle and luring at the same time. Robin couldn't help but be lulled into a small sense of security. Especially since Slade was still running his hand through his hair and Robin couldn't help but suddenly notice how tired he was. He cursed himself mentally for staying up all the nights before as he blinked himself awake and stared intently at Slade.

Slade's eye began to narrow and Robin knew that it wasn't out of any form of spite or glare. But Robin was getting an impulse to lean into the madman's touch and he didn't understand why. His throat felt dry, his heart was beating so hard that Robin wouldn't be surprised if it pounded out of his chest. His knees were beginning to shake and felt like buckling and his arms could no longer support the light yet sturdy weight of his bo-staff which always seemed like just an extension of himself. He released his weapon into Slade's hold and the criminal discarded the weapon to the side where it bounced and echoed around the silent room until it simply rolled into the adjacent wall and stopped altogether.

Robin felt his eyes start to feel very heavy and he opened his mouth to take a shaky inhale. When he felt Slade's thumb trace over his lips, he closed his eyes and pressed the flats of his hands to the wall behind him in an attempt to steady himself out. The room felt like it was spinning and all the while Robin's heart beat only quickened. He was becoming lightheaded very quickly and if he didn't do something fast he might end up losing all of his concentration instead of just ninety-five percent of it like he already had.

"Do you have the same interest in me that I've come to have in you, pretty Robin?" Slade asked as his gloved thumb continued to outline Robin's very pink lips. The boy wouldn't remember the conversation in the morning, so was the after-effect of the sleeping-truth coating.

"I think so," Robin answered honestly. He wasn't exactly sure what Slade's interests were, but as Slade placed his other hand on Robin's hip, Robin got a pretty good idea and nodded his head a definite 'yes'. "For the last three nights," Robin opened his eyes again and stared up at the mysterious man before him. That stare was so captivating and, in a strange way, addicting. "I haven't been able to sleep. You're on my mind too much." Robin's voice fell down to a whisper. "I want to know who you are."

"You will know me, Robin, all in good time." Slade ran his fingers once more through Robin's ebony spikes. "But I want you to sleep; skipping that many nights of sleep isn't healthy for a boy your age." Robin's eyes closed again and he felt himself fall forward a bit as his knees finally did seem to collapse under him. He forced open his eyes as strong arms caught him and lifted him up. "Shh, go to sleep, it's alright. I've got you now, my Robin."

Robin knew that he shouldn't be in this situation, that he shouldn't feel so warm and protected and comfortable in this man's arms. Slade was supposed to be Robin's enemy; he was a bad man. A very bad man that interested Robin in a way he didn't want to admit to and gosh, Slade was so warm even under that metal and spandex. But Robin didn't care for the moment about anything too much. He simply closed his eyes as he cuddled his head against Slade's chest and fell asleep for the first time in too long.

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When he awoke, it was with a start and he was out of breath. Robin looked frantically around himself and sighed in relief to find himself in his bed. He sat still for a moment and massaged his temples as he tried to recall everything about last night. He remembered going to the docks and meeting Slade. Then things became a blur except for this incredible heat that he had felt and this cared for feeling while he was…asleep in Slade's arms! What happened to him last night?

Robin glanced at the clock and noticed that it was around seven, he had time to brood and try to figure out what had happened to him the night before. So he did so, until he remember everything, or vaguely did at least. By then it was a quarter past eight.

Now he had to try and remember anything that had happened after he fell asleep in Slade's arms. But he couldn't think of a thing; he had really fallen into a very deep sleep. He didn't even remember how he had gotten into the Tower again. As he came to that thought he froze before quickly checking his belt to see that his communicator, the Tower's 'house key', was still in his possession and locked from last night after Slade had called.

Then that means that Slade knew how to get into the Tower without using one of the communicators! Robin would have to have Cyborg increase the house's alarm system and defense system. As well as check the communicators' hacking security. The cybernetic teen was going to have a lot of work on his hands.

His team! Robin jumped up from the bed and grabbed his cape, hanging off of the side of his desk, as he ran out the door. Slade might still be in the Tower or he might have hurt the others while he was in the Tower. He had to warn them and make sure they remain safe. If Slade had hurt any of them, then it would be his entire fault.

"Titans!" Robin shouted as he ran to the main room. All four Titans looked at their panting leader in the doorway. Beast Boy had a pancake halfway into his mouth, Cyborg was about to sit down to a stack of waffles, Starfire was holding something pink and moving in her hand, and Raven was blowing on a cup of tea; everything was normal. Robin sighed and ran his hand through his hair. They were all safe.

"Sorry, false alarm." He smiled and noticed how Cyborg and Beast Boy turned their heads away from him and Raven was seemingly ignoring him more than usual. What was wrong with them? After a moment, Robin remembered that he had betrayed their trust when he had become Red X. Of course they were still sour about that. He didn't blame them either.

He sighed as he walked over to the fridge and began to shift around for something to drink. He wasn't really hungry that morning and besides, sitting down and eating with the team would, sadly, be awkward and uncomfortable for everyone. Finding the apple juice, he sat it on the counter and retrieved a glass from the cupboard.

"Robin?" Starfire floated beside him, still holding the squirming pink thing. "Are you alright, friend? It is not like you to have the false alarms."

"Yeah, Starfire, it was just," he paused for a second to think for a proper excuse. The second went unnoticed as he thought of a lie. "A nightmare I had, that's all."

"Maybe it was your conscious getting to you." Cyborg replied bitterly from the table as he shoved a waffle dripping with syrup into his mouth. Robin sighed again and absentmindedly wondered how long they were going to hold a grudge against him for that mistake.

"Look guys, I apologize for what I did, alright? It was wrong of me to go behind your backs. But if I had told you, then you would have held back and Slade would have seen through me." He cringed, Slade had seen through him anyway.

"Slade did see through you." Raven's a mind reader, but she didn't even have to read his mind to know what he was thinking. "Just promise us that you won't go behind our backs again."

Robin inhaled sharply and after pouring himself a glass, replaced the apple juice into the fridge. "I promise." He smiled as his friends smiled back. He was already lying to them; betraying their trust again, so soon. How many more times would they forgive him? "And to make it up to you guys, I'll take dish duty for the rest of the week. Okay?"

"Sounds sweet to me; I burnt my first batch of pancakes so have fun scrubbing those pans." Beast Boy grinned as he thumbed towards the sink already filled with dishes from just after one meal.

"Wonderful," Robin muttered to himself as he set to work on the most hated chore of the Tower.  
-------

Lying awake for yet another night, Robin kept glancing at his digital clock from his computer screen. He couldn't focus on his files. He kept expecting Slade to call again. His communicator was sitting beside his keyboard and he found himself staring at that more than his actual work.

He couldn't believe it, but he was actually hoping for Slade to call him again. He couldn't exactly call Slade after all so he had to just wait and see what the madman was planning. And if he did call, then Robin had a lot to say to the man, starting with demanding what type of chemicals Slade had used on him.

After spending the entire afternoon thinking about what had happened the night before, he had deduced that Slade must have had some sort of sleeping agent on his glove. He also figured that beneath the metal and tight, dark spandex, Slade was extremely warm and didn't wear armor like Batman did. Though that last bit of information he wouldn't voice to the man at all.

But most importantly, he still had all the questions from before running through his head. Except now, he had even more than before and they were in bold print under the file in his head labeled 'Have to Find the Answer No Matter the Cost'. He sighed and placed his elbows on the wooden desk as he rested his aching head in his hands. He had a headache the size of the Batmobile.

"Tylenol," Robin mumbled to himself as he stood from his chair and walked to his private bathroom to grab some of the headache reducing pills. He looked around his bathroom after he swallowed two of the pills and decided that a hot shower would probably help his headache as well.

He began undressing, everything, even his mask came off. But that was the only time his mask came off. Other than in his shower in his private bathroom that the other Titans didn't even know about, the mask was always on.

The hot water poured down his body and he sighed happily. He felt a little sore because he had slept in his uniform the night before, not like it was the first time to happen or anything, but it still made him sore to do so. Then again, he's rather glad Slade didn't change him into his regular pajamas before placing him in the bed. That would have been awkward, asleep or not.

But that thought, of the powerful and unknown Slade undressing and redressing him before laying him safely to bed. Of perhaps the man lingering in the process to run his hands over Robin's smooth skin, his black clad hand standing out against the pale body of the boy.

Robin bit his lip at the thought to keep a moan in as he slid his hand down his chest to rest on his half hardened anatomy. He teased his nipple with his other hand, thinking that it was Slade's hand instead and so twisting a bit harder than he normally did when he masturbated.

He remembered the warmth coming off of the other man, the feel of being in his powerful arms, the way Slade touched his face. Robin wrapped his hand around his erection and began to pump as the water continued to spray over him, and steam filled the bathroom. Bringing his hand from his nipple to cup the side of his face, he rubbed his face against it as he imagined it as Slade's.

Thrusting into his hand, Robin started to pant and closed his eyes. He finally knew what the man looked like, well in costume at least. But that was more than he had known a little over a month ago. When he had first jerked off to the thought of Slade, he could only really picture the slight outline of the man, and of course, his piercing eye.

Oh, that eye. It felt like it was always watching him, looking through him, taking him apart and putting him back together, only better. Robin pumped harder and brought his hand to his gasping mouth. He clamped down on it as he screamed and came all over his own stomach. He continued to shake and leaned with the hand not in his mouth against the tiled wall of the shower as the water cleaned all evidence of his sick habit.

He was no longer disgusted with himself for jerking off while thinking of his enemy. It had happened too many times for him to truly be disgusted with himself for it. He was just ashamed of himself. But he was a teenaged boy, he had reasoned with himself; he couldn't exactly help who his hormones made him attracted to.

When he finally caught his breath again, Robin washed himself off and shampooed his hair as well. He shut the water off and reached out into the steamy room for the towel on his rack. He dried his face off and ruffled his hair with the towel to dry it off a bit. Running the red towel over his body, he dried himself off and wrapped it around his waist as he rubbed some steam off of the mirror and stared at himself.

He blinked at his reflection and smiled. His eyes were still the same blue that had matched his parents' and always received compliments when he was introduced to anyone while being Dick Grayson. Often he found himself staring at his mirror counterpart, just to remind him of who is he, who he still is, and forever will be, even if he won't always be Robin.

Covering his blue eyes once again with his mask, Robin stepped out of the bathroom, a bit of steam escaping the room behind him. He headed towards his closet when his communicator started to ring. His thoughts immediately turned to Slade and he ran toward his desk to answer the device before the villain hung up or he missed the man's call.

He flipped the device open and, sure enough, there was Slade's form. "Robin," Slade greeted the boy. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

Robin's brow furred and he looked down at himself, remembering that he was naked except for his towel, which he quickly tightened his hold on. His face flushed but he still glared and tried to not think about the fact that he was talking to Slade while only wearing a towel. "I just finished my shower." He mumbled in his defense.

"Would you like me to call you back while you get dressed then?" Slade asked. Robin's blush deepened as he noticed that Slade wasn't looking at his face but everywhere else.

Still, he nodded and mumbled a 'thanks' as Slade cut the connection. Robin closed the communicator and quickly changed into a fresh uniform. He sat on his bed, the communicator in hand, and waited for Slade to call him. Feeling ridiculous, he got the image that he was the desperate girlfriend waiting for her boyfriend to call back so they could start their evening chat about nothing important. That thought made him blush.

He wasn't a girlfriend, first of all, and he wasn't dating Slade, no matter what the man had asked him the night before. Even though the man had drugged him and the first question had been if Robin felt similar to him instead of asking for some deep secret or anything like that. But that was probably a trick. Robin knew Slade had only asked him that for some other reason. It had nothing to do with Robin's secret lust towards his enemy and Slade possibly lusting back. Nothing.

The communicator started ringing again and Robin picked it up before his blush from that ridiculous thought had even faded. "Feeling better now that you're clothed?" Slade asked and Robin's blush only deepened.

Robin cleared his throat and looked at Slade, ignoring the last comment. "What happened last night?"

"Straight to business, no pleasantries first, Robin? Don't you even care how my day went?" Slade mocked halfheartedly. Once again, Robin was reminded of his girlfriend and boyfriend analogy.

"All I care about is finding out why you forced me out last night only to drug me and return me to my room with only one question answered. You only asked me one question while I was in the perfect conditioned to be interrogated. You had me more than half asleep and dosed with a truth serum." Robin narrowed his eyes. "And how did you get into the Tower without using my communicator as the key?"

"I could answer those questions and set your mind to ease, but I'd rather not. I never do well with interrogations over the phone. Why don't we meet up somewhere instead?" Slade inquired.

"I'm not falling for that again." Robin sneered. "You might have been able to trick me the first time but I'm not meeting up with you anywhere again in the middle of the night."

"I see no reason why you won't. I didn't harm you last night, did I?" Robin didn't respond to the question but Slade did for him. "No, I didn't. I returned you to your room and saw to it that you actually got a slightly good night's sleep instead of trying to get you in a conversation while you were half asleep already and probably would have slipped and said something you would have regretted telling me. I believe you rather owe me for my kindness."

"I don't owe you anything, Slade. You're a criminal." Robin licked his lips before he continued. "You might have done something a bit nice, in a distasteful way, might I add, but that doesn't make up that you almost set the town on fire or that you tried to steal high-tech computer chips."

"But I didn't steal the chips or set the town on fire." Slade remarked.

"Because we stopped you." Robin growled.

"No, because those weren't my real intentions." Slade smiled behind his mask as he watched Robin straightened and become more interested. "If I really wanted this city burned down or those chips for myself, then I would have succeeded because I always succeed in what I do; I never lose. But I simply wanted something else, which I achieved while pulling the few stunts that I had."

"What did you really want then?" Robin couldn't help it, he was truly fascinated now. The man's purpose wasn't even what he had thought it had been.

"Your attention." Slade replied calmly as Robin's heart skipped a beat.

"What?" He asked stupidly as he felt his blush returning again.

"Like I said before, Robin, without me trying to endanger your city, you would have never noticed me, never started to become intrigued with me, and I would have never found out about how you feel for me." Robin's heart just stopped beating altogether as he tried to think of a response that wouldn't start making things awkward.

"I don't know what you mean." Robin tried to lie, but by the way Slade's eye narrowed, he knew he hadn't been successful, even if he hadn't stuttered for even a moment and probably could have fooled the Titans.

"What makes you think I'm going to let you try to lie to me tonight when I already have the truth from last night?" Slade asked with a little purr in his voice. "Robin, I've done nothing that you can really call damage to your precious city because I have no desire to do so. All I desire is to get to know you better. We obviously feel the same way for each other; it would only make sense that we see how much mutual feelings there are between us."

Robin bit his bottom lip for a moment and looked at all the newspaper clippings on his floor that he had yet to put back in his workroom. It was true that Slade really hadn't done anything exactly evil, not yet. And maybe Robin could make it so the man never did. Maybe if Robin could get to know the man better, he'd be able to convince Slade to give up a life of crime before he did do something truly evil. It was obvious that Slade had been holding back and now Robin knew why; the man only wanted to get Robin's attention, not hurt anyone even though he obviously could.

If he did what Slade wanted, he'd be stopping the man from hurting anyone. And if he ever got caught, he could always claim that he was doing it to protect his city because, in a way, he was doing just that and more. "Alright, I'll meet you somewhere tonight and we can start to get to know each other, but only on one condition," Robin looked back up at the screen and he swore Slade's eye was glittering with delight.

"Name it," Slade inquired, not really promising Robin anything until he knew what the boy was asking him.

"While we're 'getting to know each other', you won't do anything illegal in Jump, you won't even try to." Robin stated.

"I promise that while we're dating," Slade emphasized the word a bit and Robin blushed as he hadn't really thought about it that way. "I won't send a single Sladebot into your city to steal something, I won't raise any elemental beast to destroy Jump, and I won't do anything else that could possibly be considered a crime in Jump City. I won't even jaywalk."

Robin couldn't help it, he smiled. Slade actually had a sense of humor. It made him even eager to start getting to know the man. "So, where would you like to meet?"

"We'll meet in the southern part of the park tomorrow night at nine." Slade decided and Robin's brow furred as he glanced to his clock.

"It's only eleven right now, why wait until tomorrow when we can still talk tonight?" Robin asked.

"All of your team members are already asleep, Robin, you should try to get a good night's rest like them. It's not healthy for you to keep forcing yourself to stay awake each night, even if it does have to do with me. Besides, you're a much better fighter after you've gotten over eight hours of sleep." Slade rebuked.

"How do you know all of this?" Robin questioned. He looked around his room for a sign that maybe the man was watching him or something. He'd have to have Cyborg check to make sure that there weren't any cameras in the Tower.

"Maybe I'll tell you tomorrow." Slade smirked behind his mask. "Sweet dreams, Robin." He reached out and turned the video transmitter off before Robin even had a chance to say anything else.


	2. Chapter 2

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin in the beginning with RobinRed X in future chapters  
**Chapter Summary: **Slade and Robin start out their relationship and both are a bit frustrated. Robin wants a kiss but can't break their rules about masks and Slade wants Robin's lips as well. Luckily, Slade knows how to compromise.

* * *

**Ideal Routine**

The day seemed to drag on for an eternity. But finally the sun had set, the Titans had started their movie, and the last few remaining hours before it was almost nine flew by. At quarter to nine, the movie was over and the Titans were already starting to argue about which type of movie to watch next.

"Sorry, guys," Robin stood up from the couch and stretched. "I'm going to have to call a rain check on this one. I want to go survey the city and make sure everything is alright."

"Man, you've got to stop being so paranoid. If something was going down in the city then we'd know about it." Cyborg shook his head. Robin shrugged his shoulders.

"Dude, you can't leave though! If you do then Raven and Starfire are going to force us to watch some sort of chick-flick!" Beast Boy whined as he waved his hands in the air desperately.

"Actually, I was going to put my vote in for a horror movie, but since you mentioned it, I will vote for Starfire's movie." Raven replied and Starfire beamed happily as she floated off the couch to put her movie in.

"Aw man." Beast Boy sighed and glared at Cyborg.

"What? It was my night to pick the first one so you know I'm not allowed to vote for the second one." Cyborg defended himself. "Besides, it's not like I like chick-flicks either."

"But you totally do, man. You were so into that chick-flick that we watched last week." Beast Boy accused. By the time the Titans actually started their second movie, Robin was already in the park. Though he was in the northern part of the park and it took a few minutes to get to the southern side.

Checking his watch, he saw that he had two minutes and he refused to be late. He had plenty of time. He smirked as he jumped from one tree branch to the next and sprinted down the empty path, listening to his footsteps echo in the vacant park as he spotted the sign indicating the southern side of the park. Flipping over the sign, he landed gracefully in front of the southern entrance and smiled. He stopped and checked his watch; nine p.m. exactly, right on time; he was so good.

"That last flip wasn't really necessary but I must admit that it was a rather impressive entrance." Slade stepped out of the shadows that Robin swore hadn't been there a moment ago.

Robin opened his mouth—he had spent most of the day planning exactly what he was going to say to Slade—and no words came out of his mouth. He simply drew a big blank. While he tried to remember his prepared speech, his mouth was still wide open and he was still staring at Slade. Robin was pretty much making a great impression.

And then his mouth was closed with the finger that had done the closing still under his chin. Robin blinked out of his thoughts and stared at Slade standing right in front of him. "It's not very becoming of you, Robin, to simply stare with such a dumbfounded expression on your fair face." Slade purred as he gently moved his finger to stroke Robin's jaw.

The boy's masked eyes widened and he backed away. "You're not knocking me out again tonight." Slade shook his head and chuckled softly.

"Don't worry, Robin, I won't pull a dirty trick like that again." Slade claimed as he folded his hands behind his back. "I was simply worried about you not getting enough sleep."

"You were worried about me?" Robin narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"Of course I was, Robin. You have quite a few nasty habits that will end up hurting you in the future if you don't take care of them now. But to break an insomniac habit you simply need to sleep a full night. You did so you're fine now and we'll be able to actually talk tonight." Slade unclasped his hands and motioned with one of them towards a nearby bench. "I'm sure you have just as many questions for me as I have for you. Care to sit down while we discuss a few things?"

Robin looked at the wooden bench under an oak tree and nodded. It wouldn't hurt to sit down. "Wait," he stopped himself from moving just as Slade turned. "How do I know this isn't some sort of trap or plan of yours?"

"You don't but since I haven't given you a reason to trust my word you wouldn't even if I told you it wasn't." Slade looked over his shoulder and Robin's hand rested on his belt with a warning glare. Chuckling, Slade faced Robin again and held out his hand. "Would a dictated treaty help calm you?"

"You're really willing to make a treaty with me?" Robin asked as he stared at the hand. He didn't trust that Slade would really make a deal with him.

"Of course I am. I promise not to attack you or any other citizen of Jump City at night as long as you're around." Slade offered. "And I am a man of my word."

"Alright, I'll believe you then and I promise not to attack you at night as well, at least not while we're on mutual talking meetings." Robin grabbed a hold of Slade's hand and his eyes widened as Slade's hand closed over his and shook. Slade's hand engulfed his own so easily. Robin gulped when Slade let go and stared at the man as he realized just how much Slade towered over him.

"So, how tall are you actually?" He asked as he decided they were now fully on mutual terms with each other and he should take the chance to find out as much information about Slade as he could.

"I'm six foot four inches." Slade replied calmly as he started walking towards the bench again. Robin jolted to catch up with him and walked by the man's side, looking him up and down. What he would give to be that tall and built…

"What made you decide to become a criminal?" Robin asked as he took in every detail of Slade's steps. He seemed to scream confidence and power with every step he took.

"I haven't decided to become a criminal, Robin, I've just decided that I don't like to follow society's rules when I don't find them fitting to my lifestyle." Slade explained as he sat down on the bench. Robin continued to stand and simply stare at how wide Slade's shoulders were and how Slade's spandex uniform showed off every inch of muscle that the man had everywhere. Slade patted the space beside him invitingly and Robin felt a bit ridiculous as he realized he had just been staring rudely at the man.

He took a seat next to Slade and he adjusted his cape to drape down over his shoulders in front of him to shield how much muscle mass he didn't have. Robin cleared his throat in an attempt to make the awkward sensation that he was feeling go away. It didn't. In fact, the situation only seemed to become more awkward due to it because now Slade's attention was drawn to him.

A gust of wind blew Robin's cape aside a bit. "So," Robin started and then trailed off as he realized he didn't know what to ask. What was too personal of a question? And could he actually just ask what Slade's planning? Robin knew things couldn't be so simple. Another blast of cold wind whistled by them and Robin shivered a bit as he wrapped his cape tightly around him once more.

"Not used to the cold autumn nights of Jump City yet?" Slade asked and Robin shrugged his shoulders to hide another shiver. He didn't think Slade caught it, but he really didn't know how good the man's eyesight was.

"Gotham's nights were pretty hot, even in autumn. Besides, when I am normally out here at night I'm chasing some crook and I don't even notice the temperature." Robin commented.

"Hm," Slade hummed lightly to himself for a moment. "Maybe we should take our meetings to an inside location."

"Do you mean another warehouse or someplace different?" Robin smirked. "Like your secret base?"

"My base isn't a secret; you just haven't been invited to it yet." Slade replied smoothly as he rested his arms on the back of the bench, his hand falling close to Robin's shoulder. Robin could have sworn that Slade was trying to pull that old move of wrapping your arm around someone's shoulders in a subtle way. "That could change, of course, if you wanted to meet their instead."

"Sure," Robin tried to act casual but inside his mind he was screaming with joy. He was about to find out where Slade's base was, where the man worked and had his plan located at. He'd be able to get the Titans together and attack the man during the day. "It would be a lot more pleasant then meeting out here in this cold weather, especially since it's only going to be getting colder the closer we get to winter."

"Good point," Robin froze as he felt Slade's hand brush lightly at his shoulder. He looked up at the man and saw that Slade was staring up at the stars so it must have been just his imagination playing tricks on him.

"Though I do think you should know that I have more than one base in this city and I'd bring you to the one I use the least. I trust that you'll hold your word about not attacking me at night, but to trust that you won't in the morning when given the chance would just be unintelligent on my part." It was as if Slade was reading Robin like an open book.

Robin nodded in understanding and glanced to see if Slade was still looking at the stars. He wasn't. Robin stared back as Slade stared at him. Finally, Robin decided to ask "What did you want to talk about?" If Slade wasn't going to blackmail him with his identity, harm him, or do anything bad like that, then what did the man want?

"I want to get to know you better, Robin; you're quite a fascinating and skillful young man. I believe that after some time I could become someone you consider more than just one of your enemies if you got a chance to know me as well." Robin flinched as Slade moved his hand faster than lighting and tipped his chin back to look at him. "I'm not going to beat around the bush here, Robin. It was proved last night that you know I feel a certain way for you and that you return that feeling."

Blushing, Robin bit his bottom lip for a moment before he spoke up. "So…you want to try to…date…or something?" Robin asked slowly, carefully choosing his words.

"Exactly, I want you to be mine, Robin." Slade's hand started to stroke under Robin's chin and the boy frowned.

"I'm not sure if--"

"I understand that you're a teenaged boy and that you're uncertain with your sexuality and you worry about what others think of you, but I'm simply asking that you give me a try." Slade asked as he watched Robin try to deal with his inner turmoil of making his decision. "Didn't I tell you already that I only started to attack this city because I wanted to catch your attention?"

"You did." Robin did remember that from the slight conversation they had had the night before.

"Do you think I will continue to attack this city once I know I have your attention?" Slade questioned and watched as Robin's eyes grew wide with realization. "If you're worried that your friends or others would think differently because you started to date me, then you can have that as an excuse. You can say that you're only doing it for the good of the city; you can be more of a hero if you're caught. But no one would find out about this, it'll be our secret." Slade suggested and Robin smiled. That did make sense and he would be stopping Slade—which is his goal—just in a different way.

"Okay." Robin responded and his eyes widened. His mouth had just spoken before he had even finished thinking it over. But once he did get a chance to think it over, he figured it really wouldn't hurt to give it a shot.

If only he knew how wrong he was.

* * *

"It's been a while since Slade's made a move, over a week now. Do you think he's planning something big?" Cyborg asked as he looked over his shoulder, making sure that Robin wasn't in the room. 

"I believe he is." Raven responded as she briefly looked up from her book. "But whatever he's planning, when the time comes, we'll stop him."

"I agree with Raven. Although, my concern is not on Slade but on Robin; have you noticed how happy he has been since he started to go out every night?" Starfire asked as said boy walked into the room whistling. Robin smiled at his friends, grabbed a glass of water, and then left the room whistling an unnamable tune again. "See what I speak of? Although I am delighted to see Robin in the mood of happiness, I do not believe it is normal."

"Maybe he's just been happy because going out every night reminds him of adventures with Batman." Beast Boy suggested as he determinedly struck the channel surf button on the remote. "Dudes, there's nothing good on. Wanna watch a movie?"

* * *

"So, which movie are we watching tonight?" Robin asked as he settled down on the couch big enough for four. Slade glanced over his shoulder and then turned back to the slight collection of movies stored in the cabinet next to the big screen. Truth be told, he had only collected most of the movies once Robin had brought up the good point that they could watch movies together. Before Robin had come along, his movie collection had been based on movies about wars. 

"Want to watch our favorite?" He asked as he pulled out said movie. Slade was sure that Robin wouldn't turn down that movie and he was quite fond of it himself.

"We just watched Brokeback Mountain on Monday." Robin pointed out. Slade shrugged his shoulders and placed the movie back into its proper place. "I didn't mean that I didn't want to watch it again, I was just reminding you." Slade stared at Robin for a moment and the boy smiled innocently as the man pulled the movie out yet again and placed it into the DVD player. "I do think I need to start bringing some movies when I come now."

"My collection isn't that limited, not anymore." Slade sat down on the couch and immediately wrapped his arm around Robin's shoulder. Robin leaned his head on Slade's chest and brought his feet up and under him as he snuggled closer to his boyfriend of two full weeks. It had been the best weeks of his teenaged life and his friends weren't even guessing the reason why he went out every night.

Slade had ended up showing Robin one of his bases. The entrance was actually at the warehouse where they had first met except it was sealed shut during the day and would only open at night if Slade unlocked the special security device that kept the entrance looking like a regular part of the concrete floor. He had yet to see the entire place, but Slade had showed him the main room—which was oddly filled with gears but Robin decided not to question it—and the room they were currently in which Robin had dubbed the movie room.

Each night Robin would leave the tower to end up at Slade's house at a quarter past nine and spend time with his boyfriend—he couldn't get enough of that, knowing that he had a boyfriend and could use the word freely—until it was half past one. Then he entered back into the Tower before any of the Titans realized how late he was out. It gave Slade and Robin enough time to talk, watch a movie, and spar sometimes.

Robin loved every moment of it. He had learned a lot about Slade just by talking with him about anything and everything. He was able to talk to the man about political viewpoints, music taste, weapons, different Karate skills and moves, favorites of different categories,—colors, foods, movies—and anything else he wanted to talk about. Slade was open-minded about everything except about personal things but that was fine with Robin. They had silently agreed not to talk about their backgrounds or take off their masks. Even though Robin thought it was unfair because Slade knew his identity and he didn't even know his last name. But he wasn't going to complain.

They hadn't done a lot of boyfriend…activities, to say the least. The most touching they have done was when they would settle down to watch a movie. But that was perfectly fine with Robin since he still blushed every time that a scene with kissing or other things happened in Brokeback Mountain.

It wasn't so fine with Slade though. He was enjoying the moment's he spent with Robin but he hated that he only had the boy for three hours while he spent twenty-one with his teammates. Robin had become very precious to Slade and it was getting harder to actually let the boy go home. He wanted Robin with him all the time. And he wanted to start becoming active with the boy.

Don't get him wrong, he loved the feel of Robin lying against him, but Slade wasn't a man who was really into cuddling. He was more of an action man. Though he would still continue to cuddle with Robin on the couch, as long as he could bring the boy into his bedroom and try some things out. Then they could cuddle together again, once they were both stark naked.

Slade knew that he couldn't skip so far ahead though and simply take the boy. Robin definitely wasn't ready for that kind of interaction. But that didn't mean that he wasn't ready for some other activities. Oh yes, Slade had a few ideas that he knew Robin would be ready to handle and enjoy.

During the movie, Slade absentmindedly stroked his fingers lightly over Robin's thigh. Tracing random patterns and shapes and feeling Robin start to twitch as he stimulated the nerves. Robin didn't seem to mind, in fact, Slade could tell that Robin was enjoying it. The boy was resting his arm on Slade's thigh now, becoming even more comfortable around him.

When the movie finally ended, Robin started talking about how he couldn't stand certain people's views on homosexuals and how he got sick at the mere thought of people actually killing someone else just for their different sexual interests.

"Let's continue this conversation somewhere more comfortable." Slade suggested as he stood from the couch and started walking out of the door and down a hallway. Robin took that as a sign to follow and he did so immediately. He couldn't help but think how huge Slade's lair was as he walked down the hall and passed door after door. None of them were marked in any way and they all looked the same. What purpose Slade had for so many rooms, Robin couldn't fathom. He also didn't know why Slade wouldn't show him around the place. It wasn't his main lair, right? So what did Slade have in this place that he didn't want Robin to see?

Running straight into Slade's back, Robin gasped from alert and took a step back; the man was so solidly built. He looked up just as Slade looked over his shoulder down at him. "You should be careful; being alert is a key point when you're fighting, after all."

"You just stopped so suddenly and I didn't have time to catch myself. Besides, we were talking, not sparring." Robin reminded as he looked around Slade at the door they had stopped at. It was the only one marked that they had passed so far.

A sharp, silver 'S' stood out on the door and Robin gulped. He hadn't known that Slade had meant going to his room to talk. Robin knew what happened when a dating couple went into a bedroom to 'talk' and he knew that he wasn't ready for such a thing yet.

"I suppose your mind must be on other things tonight." Slade purred and Robin's eyes widened. He opened his mouth to ask where Slade's mind was but Slade opened the door with a loud 'swoosh' and stepped into the room before he had a chance to object to anything that Slade might have planned.

Robin rubbed his arm nervously as he walked into Slade's room behind the man. "Get the door, would you?" Slade asked as he sat down on the edge of the bed and watched Robin.

Closing the door by pushing the button on the side, Robin walked over to Slade and stood before him. "Listen, Slade, I think—" Robin's eyes widened again as Slade suddenly grabbed his wrists and pulled him to straddle his lap. Gulping again, Robin tried to find his voice once again but Slade was right against him and his thumbs were rubbing circles against his wrist. The heat radiating off of the man alone was enough to get Robin sweating. Not to mention the fact that spandex did a _really_ bad job concealing anatomy.

Slade placed his hand gently on Robin's face and Robin couldn't help but lean into the touch. He had always imagined Slade's gloves to always be cold, but they always turned out to feel so warm against his skin instead. And as the man started to rub his thumb over his mouth, staring at him with that intent single eye, Robin shivered and closed his eyes, completely forgetting what he wanted to protest.

His hands suddenly seemed to be moving on their own as they wrapped around Slade's neck. He jerked them back a bit when the gap of bare skin between his gloves and sleeves touched the cold metal of Slade's neck plate. Instead, he settled for holding onto Slade's shoulders. That way his protected skin only touched Slade's cold neck plate and it barely had any impact through his fabric.

Then Slade's thumb started to rub a little harder against his bottom lip and he felt the need for actual skin to press against his mouth to stimulate it better. His hands were doing what they wanted again and not asking him for permission as they traveled to the area where Slade's mask began and where his shirt's collar stopped. He slowly rolled the material down to the rim of the neck plate, revealing Slade's bare neck.

Seeing the white flesh below the spandex,--actual flesh proving how human Slade was--Robin couldn't help but lean forward and press a kiss to Slade's throat. Both of Slade's hands went to Robin's hips and the man cleared his throat.

"What are you doing, Robin?" Slade asked and Robin couldn't help but smirk against Slade's neck. For once, Slade was the one that was confused, given Robin was a bit as well, but at least Slade didn't know _everything_. Besides, boyfriends kissed, right? And you didn't always have to kiss each other's lips.

"I'm not sure, but what you're doing to me…I just want to kiss you but I'm not about to break our rule about our masks." Robin pressed his soft lips against Slade's revealed skin yet again and moaned happily at being able to actually touch the man behind the mask, even if he didn't know the face.

Slade's hands shifted off of his waist and another kiss later, one was on his chin again; bare skin tilting his chin away from Slade's mask; Slade had removed his gloves. Robin smiled and rubbed into the touch as he removed his own gloves and sat them next to Slade on the bed, near Slade's own discarded gloves.

Robin grabbed the hand that wasn't on his face in both of his and simply gawked at the difference like he usually found himself doing. Slade's hand was huge. Also really warm, Robin just had to squeeze his hands against Slade's callused one. Slade squeezed back and Robin could tell that he had enough strength in his one hand to hold onto both of his. That idea made him shiver, or perhaps it was the fact that Slade was rubbing his lips again, bare handed this time and making it feel even better than before.

"Slade," Robin closed his eyes and moaned softly as his pink lips continued to be stimulated by Slade's heavy thumb; the skin on skin contact felt wonderful. He had never known that contact through the lips could feel so good, but he supposed it was to be expected since people enjoyed kissing so much.

His eyes shot open in surprise though as Slade's thumb nudged his lips apart and slid into his mouth. He looked at Slade hesitantly but couldn't read anything in the man's eye as he simply continued to stare at him. Robin swallowed the small lump in his throat and slowly touched Slade's thumb with the tip of his tongue.

It was an odd taste, kind of manly with a hint of a leather/Kevlar mix, and yet so much like Slade. Robin watched as Slade's eye narrowed softly and he could tell that it wasn't a glare, but a look of pleasure. This made Robin happy because it meant that he was finally learning how to read Slade a little bit and that was good. So he smiled around the thumb and closed his eyes again.

He always was the type of kid that loved to put on a show, so why wouldn't he put on a show for Slade? Boyfriends did that for each other, right? One felt happy because they brought joy to the other; that's how relationships were supposed to work.

Wrapping his tongue around Slade's thumb he began to suck it repeatedly in and out; making loud unnecessary slurping noises and moans in the back of his throat as he went along. All the while, he made it seem like he was enjoying sucking on Slade's thumb as much as he would a lollipop.

Then Slade pulled his thumb away and replaced it with two fingers. Robin opened his eyes for a second, caught Slade's look, and could tell that his eye was filled with desire. He moaned again and began to swirl his tongue around Slade's fingers. Slade was obviously enjoying this so Robin decided that he did too.

He had been holding onto Slade's other hand with his own but Slade pulled free of Robin's grasp and rested his free hand on his waist, rubbing a soft circle under his belt for a moment until he moved to the belt buckle. Slade unbuckled his belt and Robin opened his eyes to stare at the man.

Slade stared back at Robin, seemingly challenging him to speak up, and slowly stroked Robin's lower back. He dipped underneath Robin's shirt and the hem of his pants to stroke his soft skin and Robin closed his eyes again. Slade simply wanted to touch a more intimate part of him; that was fine. Besides, he could trust Slade; Slade wouldn't do anything that he wasn't comfortable with.

After a few more moments of nothing but sucking and stroking, Slade pulled his sodden fingers out of Robin's mouth and moved them to stroke a wet line across Robin's lower back. He dipped his wet fingers into Robin's pants and traced the boy's crack, moving over the puckered spot and rubbing his slick fingers over it.

Robin gasped at the feeling and his eyes widened at the realization of what Slade was about to do. "Slade, I--"

Slade's other hand covered his mouth to stop him from objecting. "I just want to try it out, Robin. We're both unfamiliar with dating another male and I want to make sure we try everything out to see what we like and what we don't like so we'll be prepared in the future." Slade pressed the tip of one of his fingers into Robin's entrance and the boy gasped again and used his hands to push against Slade's chest. "Just let me get two into you, if you don't like the feeling, I'll stop. I promise, Robin. If you don't like it then I'll never do it again."

Robin frowned but reluctantly nodded behind Slade's other hand. After all, he always was interested in experimenting and that is what boyfriends did. Slade removed his hand and Robin forced a small smile on his face.

"We're not going to, um, do _it_, are we? I mean, at least not tonight or anything like that?" Robin asked a bit worried. Ever since he had started to date Slade he had been looking up things on the internet—very carefully so he didn't run onto a particularly crude website—and he knew that many people used fingers first to prepare their lover for other sexual things.

"No, Robin, I'm aware that you're not ready for that yet." Slade reassured. "Besides, when and if that does happen, I want it to be special for you. You always remember your first time and that often leads to how you view sex from there on."

Robin moved his hands to stroke Slade's chest while the man talked, showing his affection to the man and trying to not think about the fact that Slade's finger was slowing inching more into him. It was a strange feeling and he breathed deeply from his nose as he tried to relax and let the unfamiliar intrusion in.

"I've read that if I pump my finger it will be easier to get the second one inside. I can't exactly work my hand like that though in your pants. Am I allowed to remove your pants?" Slade asked as he slowly pulled his finger out and then managed to push it back inside. The angle was incredibly awkward and hard to work with.

Robin bit his lip as he thought about it. He finally shook his head. "No, I don't think I'm ready for that either." He blushed as Slade chuckled.

"So I'm allowed to touch but not to see? Worried about your size, Robin?" Slade chuckled again as Robin's blush increased and the boy ducked his head. "Don't worry, Robin," Slade cupped Robin's face with his unoccupied hand. "I know that, when the day comes, you'll be wonderful."

Robin continued to blush. "Sweet talk still won't get my pants off." Slade snapped his fingers and Robin smiled. Slade may not be an overall jokester, but he had his moments of sarcasm and funny quips that allowed Robin to remember that the man really was human.

"I'm going to add my second one now, alright?" Slade asked as he wiggled the tip of his second finger into Robin. The boy nodded but couldn't help the wince as Slade's two fingers started to slide into him. It was extremely uncomfortable and his body kept shouting at him to tense up, that something did not belong and that he shouldn't let it in.

"How does it feel?" Slade asked as both of his fingers were knuckle deep into the boy. He moved his fingers slowly inside Robin, scissoring them apart to spread Robin apart farther, and the boy hissed in discomfort.

"Really awkward and slightly uncomfortable; I could see if this led to, well, um, intercourse how it would be helpful, but otherwise this is kind of just a really disgusting notion. How does it feel to you?" Robin asked.

"Warm and tight," Slade sighed and started to slip his fingers out. "But since you don't like it, we won't do it again. I don't want to cause you any discomfort. I was just hoping that we could start moving a bit faster with things."

"Well, we have only been dating for two weeks. But I do understand what you mean. Since we're at the disadvantage of not being able to kiss it would make since to move to the next step, even though it seems like we're taking a huge step. We're not though, well, not really; we're just skipping first base." Robin smiled as he tried to make an excuse to how they weren't moving too quickly to himself more than Slade. Slade slid his hand completely out of his pants and he sighed happily.

Robin reclicked his belt into place and accidentally brushed Slade's crotch, which was extremely hard. He blushed and hesitantly looked up at Slade. The man's normally dull blue eye was even duller by the lust that had clouded over his vision. "Do you want me to, um," Robin floundered for a proper suggestion for this situation. He knew that it was getting late and he'd have to leave soon, but what boyfriend left when the other was still hard? "Would you like me to give you a hand job?" He asked, his voice a mere nervous whisper as he knew his face was bright red still.

He had never yet touch Slade like that but he masturbated regularly—more than usual since he had started to date Slade—and he figured that if he liked his own hand, Slade might as well.

Slade hummed in the back of his throat. "If you're up to it, why don't we try a blowjob instead?" Slade asked instead. "That is, if you're up to the challenge. I know that not everyone is actually interested in this sort of sexual activity, but I figured it's just something that we would eventually do and the sooner we started it, the better. But we can wait to do it some other night if you feel like we've done enough interacting for one night. I wouldn't want to rush you too much." Slade knew that if he was playing with Robin's emotions but he didn't feel guilty about it. If Robin got flustered by his concern and if he made Robin the center of attention for the night, then he would get what he wanted. Besides, the boy had been teasing him by sucking his fingers.

Indeed, Robin blushed and Slade knew that he had gotten what he wanted before Robin even voiced it. "That sounds fine. I mean, I've read a few things," his blush became a deeper crimson. "And I am a bit interested in…well, how it would, um, taste and everything." Robin ducked his head and Slade smiled behind his mask. The boy wanted to suck cock and he wasn't about to let Robin's eager mouth go to waste.

"I'll coach you through the process if you want me to." Slade suggested and Robin nodded. "Alright, you should probably kneel on the ground in between my legs to start off." Robin stepped off his lap and Slade frowned at the lack of heat but spread his legs and his good mood returned instantly as Robin blushed and placed his hands on his thighs.

"Should I…?" Robin gestured to the hard bump under Slade's spandex and Slade nodded. Slowly, Robin moved his hands up to Slade's belt and unclicked it, trying to make it an intimate act. Slade lifted his hips and Robin pulled his spandex pants down to reveal the man's black, tented boxers. "Um, should I…would it be better if I…"

"You can settle them around my ankles, Robin." Slade reassured the boy by cupping the back of his neck and rubbing his thumb softly over the boy's warmed skin.

Robin pulled his pants all the way down to the floor and licked his lips as he rested a hand on Slade' muscled thigh, below the boxers. Slade waited patiently as Robin slowly then roamed his hand back up to the elastic band on his boxers and he lifted his hips once again until his boxers joined his pants around his ankles. Robin shifted his knees so that he was kneeling on the fabric and the boy gulped as he stared at Slade's erection.

"Wow," Robin's eyes were round and quite comical looking as he stared at Slade's erection as it stood up straight against Slade's armored stomach. Robin hesitantly reached out and wrapped his hand around it, jolting a bit when it twitched at his touch. He looked up at Slade, worried that he had done something.

"Relax, Robin," Slade voice didn't hide the smile that his mask hid. "I'm not going to break by your touch." Robin grinned at his own stupidity and continued to blush in his embarrassment.

"Right, sorry." He apologized for acting like the scared virgin he was. It was true that Slade was also inexperienced with another guy sucking him off, but he was sure that Slade had probably had women give him blowjobs before and he hoped he wouldn't mess up.

"Why don't you go ahead and take a little taste, see if you like it?" Slade suggested and Robin nodded as he carefully bent forward and licked at the head of the long member. Slade moaned to show Robin that everything was okay—even better, in fact—and Robin continued to lick down to his hand that was still wrapped at the base of Slade. His tongue was wet and unskilled in a way that made Slade appreciate the sloppy, unsure licks.

Robin traced the vein on the underside of Slade's erection and he shifted his hand from the back of the boy's neck to his head as Robin's tongue traveled up to Slade's head again. "Go on, Robin, you've done great so far." He encouraged.

Slowly, Robin wrapped his lips around Slade's tip and sucked. Slade couldn't tell exactly, but he was pretty sure that Robin's eyes were on him behind the mask. Robin slowly moved his hand up and down Slade's shaft as he continued to suck and lick at Slade's head.

"Good, Robin, that feels amazing." Slade started to apply a slight pressure to Robin's head and the boy's movements all stilled. "Just try taking more." Slade reassured him as he stopped pushing on Robin's head.

Robin moaned a reply and started to lower his mouth on Slade as his hand began to pump again. "Good, Robin, good," Slade moaned as Robin's teeth accidentally scrapped over him. That seemed to be the right way to go because Robin started to get a bit more daring. His hand stopped stroking him and trailed down to fondle his balls. Slade moaned again his fingers gently rubbed in Robin's hair as the boy slurped loudly and continued to try and go down further on Slade.

The boy made a little gagging noise and pulled back but determinedly went back down on Slade and did a little movement with his tongue that caused Slade to hiss in pleasure and tighten his hand on Robin. "I'm coming," he warned and a moment later he was shooting down Robin's throat.

Robin's eyes were wide as he swallowed, milking Slade for all he had, and when Slade finally stopped Robin pulled off and wiped his mouth as a bit of cum dribbled from the corner of his mouth. "Wow, that was…" Robin couldn't find words to describe it but he smiled and Slade grinned behind his mask as well.

Slade rose and pulled his pants and boxers back up as Robin stood up and took a step back. "You're quite the natural at this, Robin. Or maybe you've been lying to me and actually just had plenty of practice with your other boyfriends?" Slade asked, a bit sarcastically as he wrapped his arm around Robin's waist and brought the boy close to him, pressing against the boy and feeling wetness between Robin's pants.

He chuckled as Robin shifted and blushed in his arm. "Don't worry, Robin, that's actually quite natural I've heard." Slade brought up his free hand and rubbed at Robin's red, puffy bottom lip.

"I've got to go, Slade, it's getting rather late." Robin smiled as he brought up his own hands and stroked up and down Slade's chest.

"I wish you could stay later. I barely get to see you, Robin." Slade protested and only tightened his arm around Robin's waist.

"You see me every day, Slade. And you have me here for hours." Robin argued as the smile remained on his face.

"True, but your friends get you every day as well and they get to be in your presence longer than I do." Slade growled and felt the shiver go up Robin's spine.

"Relax, there's plenty of me to go around. Besides, you know you can't have me all to yourself, Slade." Robin grinned, flashing his white teeth. It was rather enthralling that Slade was jealous of his friends and that the man was so possessive.

"I might have to amend that then." Slade mumbled as he ran his hand up Robin's back and then released the boy. "Alright then, run back to your tower before I change my mind and force you to stay here with me forever." Robin laughed and squeezed Slade's hand as he turned to the door.

"Goodnight, Slade, I'll see you tomorrow." Robin waved as he closed the door behind himself and made his way out of Slade's lair and to the docks.

"You bet you will." Slade promised to himself in the empty room.

* * *

**A.N. **Holy chocolate starfish, Batman! It's an update! Yes, I fell behind during the holidays so 'Aftershock Prizes' still isn't done and I haven't been working on it at all. I'll work on it tomorrow and maybe if a good plotbunny comes along--stay away, Lucy, this isn't hinting anything to you--I'll get it finished. Dlsky has set a challenge to me to match her updates with my own. So, just like her, I will be updating this story every weekend! So, go thank her for motivating my lazy butt! 


	3. Chapter 3

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic. Especially this chapter!!!!  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin in the beginning with RobinRed X in future chapters  
**Chapter Summary: **Robin knows how to balance his team with his secret relationship with Slade but he's starting to feel guilty. He makes things up with his teammates but now he has to make it up to Slade though Slade has an extreme answer to that problem. What happens when he doesn't want to do what Slade wants him to?

* * *

**A Game of Baseball**

The night was illuminated by the full moon in the cloudless and starry sky. From the natural light, Robin could see the outlines of all the buildings in Jump City. The tall, single skyscraper stood out from the rest of the buildings as the city continued to grow seemingly under Robin's eye. Most of the lights were out on each building but Robin could make out a few single lights on, belonging to those hard workers that were working late or possibly trying to get an early head start for the next day. It was such a familiar site to him, the darkness of the city.

Flipping open his communicator, Robin watched the clock flash two thirty in the green light that was the same similar color of Starfire's starbolts. He sighed and tapped the code into the door's hidden number pad and inserted his communicator into the given slot until it chimed. He pocketed his communicator once again and opened the door only a crack so he could slip in.

He was later than he normally was when he snuck back in after spending his night with Slade. But he didn't mind in the least bit, considering what he had done with that extra time with Slade. Robin's face flushed scarlet simply at the night activity. He grinned as he made his way through the Tower, thoughts of Slade and—dare he think it—love running through his mind. He had never felt any happier.

Carefully sneaking past the main room, he made a beeline straight for his bedroom with plans of passing out immediately. He stopped and held his breath when he heard a noise behind him. Carefully slipping his hand down his belt, he tightened his hold onto a birdarang.

A light clicked on and he turned, sliding into a defense position while he held the birdarang at the ready. "Robin," He sighed when he heard the familiar voice and quickly replaced his birdarang back into his belt.

"Guys, you can't sneak up like that on me." Robin smiled at his teammates though under his mask his eyes darted from one worried expression to the other and his instincts sent warning lights throughout his body. "And what are all of you doing up still? I can believe that Beast Boy's up still at two if there was some monster movie marathon."

"There was," Beast Boy grinned. "The Monster from the Black Lagoon was on and so were the two sequels. Ouch," Cyborg elbowed him in the arm and he rubbed his hurt appendage as he glared at the cyber electronic man.

"But that's not the reason that we're all up waiting for you." Cyborg remedied, quickly getting back onto the subject.

"What's going on?" Robin asked as he frowned and took in Cyborg's somber mood. It didn't make sense that his teammates had stayed up to wait until he got back unless there was an emergency and if there was an emergency then they normally would have used his communicator to contact him. Something was definitely wrong.

"Robin, we are worried about you." Starfire spoke up as she bowed her head and wrapped her hands around her bare arms. "You have been staying out later than usual and when you get home you head to your room of work and stay up even later, getting barely any sleep." Hearing that from Starfire in such a dreary tone when her voice usually filled with so much excitement and passion made Robin feel incredibly guilty and he almost considered telling them the truth. Almost.

"Guys, I'm sorry about making you worry so much, but I'm fine, really. I've just been out late to get more work done and I'm use to the late hours so it's nothing. Besides, I've found out a lot so it's all for the greater good of Jump City." Robin tried to persuade his friends into dropping the topic. "But you're right, I do need to sleep so I'll skip the files tonight and go to bed now."

"Robin," Raven looked him in the eyes. "We're not worried about your lack of sleep. You've been happier in the past two weeks than usual. We're worried about your obsession with Slade."

"It's not an obsession." Robin snapped. "Besides, no one even mentioned Slade." He glared and looked at the ground, willing himself not to pout and cross his arms over his chest. He hated when his team started to question his motivations with Slade. They didn't know the whole story yet, but they didn't need to. Robin was doing exactly what he said he'd do; stop Slade, no matter what. Dating Slade to stop Slade, spending time with him, learning more about him, it was well worth it.

"But that's where you've been, huh?" Cyborg asked and Robin tensed as he wondered how much his team knew and what they would say next. "You've been out trying to dig up things about Slade."

Robin released a soft sigh of relief. "So what if I have? Every time I go out at night and learn something about Slade is another night that Slade doesn't do any more harm. Whatever it takes to stop Slade I'm willing to do."

"That's not healthy, dude." Beast Boy frowned and rubbed at his eyes. "You've got to stop worrying about Slade. I mean, the guy hasn't shown up since you tried to fool him as Red X." The tension in the hallway suddenly got thicker simply at mentioning that incident. "Maybe he lost interest in whatever he was going to do or you scared him away by showing how far you're willing to go to stop him."

"Or maybe he got a new plan from that mistake." Robin brought up quietly, almost a murmur. "Guys, I…" He faltered for a moment for something to say. "I'm sorry for worrying you. How about we have a night to hang tomorrow? I know I'm a day late for movie night, but how does a few movies, pizza, popcorn, and just us five sound like?"

"Wonderful!" Starfire burst out happily before anyone else could say something. Raven and Cyborg smiled as well and Beast Boy pumped his fists in the air.

"Dudes and dudettes, I propose a ninja movie marathon!" Beast Boy beamed and held out his hand which Cyborg eagerly delivered a high-five to.

"Man, that's what I'm talking about. Alright, y' all, let's get some shut eye so we can stay up extra late tomorrow." Cyborg declared happily as he turned around and headed toward the hallway with his room. "Night," he called out behind him as Raven bowed a goodnight and headed with him.

"Goodnight friends, have the sleep of pleasantries." She waved and floated off toward her room.

"Night, Robin." Beast Boy grinned. "Try and get some rest because once the sun goes down tomorrow its one kung fu action movie after the other." Beast Boy made a loud noise and karate chopped the air as he headed past Robin's room toward his own.

"Goodnight," Robin called out, grinning as he opened his door and closed it behind him. He ran a hand through his hair and closed his eyes as he leaned against the door. He already wanted to see Slade again and now he had to wait two days before he could.

"Slade will understand though." Robin reassured himself as he stripped down to his boxers and mask and climbed under his covers. He stared up at the ceiling for a moment before the memories of the day came back to him and he fell asleep with a grin on his face.

* * *

Robin looked over his shoulder and then glanced around once more to quadruple check that no one was around before he bent down and slid into the entrance of Slade's lair. Even though he had seen Slade two days ago, it had felt like an eternity had passed since he had last seen the man. Quickly running through the toxic tunnels, for once just eager to get to Slade rather than just being eager to escape the fumes, Robin bypassed the normal areas where he would stop under a man hole to try and figure out where he was and continued to run instead at his full speed. 

Coming to the door, Robin decided to forego knocking—Slade had only told him a thousand times that he didn't need to knock—and just entered. "Hey, Slade," he called out, listening to his echoes and the grinding of the gears as he bounded down the stairs. "I'm sorry about not telling you sooner that I couldn't make it last night, but it was kind of unexpected and the Titans are starting to get worried about the time I spend out. So I might have to start spending one night out of the week with them, just to let them know that I'm fine and to make sure they don't start suspecting anything." Robin explained as he approached the large stone made chair in the center of the room.

The monitors in front of the chair were off, like the normally were when Robin was there, and they cast an eerie black glow on the chair, illuminating the rough corners of it. Robin always wondered why Slade had chose his main chair to be made out of something as uncomfortable as rock but he never questioned the man. Besides, he understood why Slade—with the man's superiority complex—had an urge to have a chair that looked like a throne, complete with his dais.

Slade sat still in the chair, his long fingers laced together as he supported his elbows on the arm rests. "I have a better idea, Robin." Slade slowly looked at the boy and waited until Robin climbed to the top of the dais before he settled his hands in his lap so Robin could take his usual seat on one of the arm rests. "Instead of ditching me unexpectedly and without any notice, like you did last night, let's prevent that from happening, ever again. From now on, I'd like you to stay here, with me, for good."

Robin suddenly tensed until he looked at Slade out of the corner of his eye. He forced an awkward laugh that echoed in the room and felt the tenseness from himself seep out to invade the air. "You're…you're not serious right? I mean, we've only been dating for a few weeks, it hasn't even been a month yet."

"Isn't that how teenagers do it nowadays? Besides, I don't feel like we're rushing or anything, we'd merely be doing what is meant to be, only sooner." Slade explained as he watched Robin carefully. Robin's mouth was opened a bit as he stared at Slade, wondering how crazy the guy seemed to be.

"Slade, that's just…" Robin searched for something that wouldn't seem that offensive without coming straight out and saying that he thought Slade was rushing things since he still barely knew anything about the man. "That's just too soon and I can't leave the Titans. I'm not ready to stop being a hero and settle with anyone for a serious relationship; I'm still just a kid and I need to live my life."

"I wouldn't ask you to give up your mantle as Robin; that's the last thing I'd make you do." Slade clarified. "I'm asking you to leave your friends and come join me. I could help you reach your full potential and you wouldn't have to hold back like you do with your friends."

"I'm not holding myself back with my friends." Robin stood from the arm rest and crossed his arms over his chest, offended. "My friends help me train and I learn how to work up different techniques with them that I wouldn't be able to do by myself. Like, Cyborg and I came up with the Sonic Boom technique that--"

"Robin, I know how your little _technique_ works," Slade mocked as he laced his fingers together once again. "And I know that when we spar together, you give me a better fight then you give any of the villains you face with your teammates because you don't want to take the spotlight away from all of them. You want to be fair to your team and that's very kind of you but in the long run it will only end up hurting you. You need to stop kidding yourself and move in with me."

"So I'll move in and then what? You'll train me to take down all the villains that you used to work beside?" Robin asked as he pursed his lips together and watched Slade carefully. His instincts were now on high guard and told him to be very careful on the water he was starting to tread on.

"Of course not, Robin, you'd work with me." Slade enlightened. "You'd easily learn the tricks of the trade and I could help you become the best out there. I could make you so good that not even Batman or any other member of the Justice League would be able to stop you."

"What?" Robin asked, outraged as he stared at Slade with disbelief. "But you aren't even a villain anymore…" Robin trailed off, uncertain himself about what he had just said.

Slade looked at Robin, under his mask, raising an eyebrow. "You didn't believe that I had stopped my 'crime spree' for good, did you, Robin? I simply call this taking time off to try and convince you of the mistakes you're making by being on the so called 'good side' and wasting your talents."

"What? But I thought that you, I mean, I really…I can't believe I thought you…" Robin frowned and shook his head. "I can't believe that I really thought I could change a villain by dating them." He unfolded his hands and started walking down the dais.

"Where do you think you're going?" Slade asked as he stood from his chair.

"I'm going home, you know, to my Tower with my friends. And I'm going to stay there until I have to stop some stupid villain that thinks they can beat us, even if that is you." Robin emphasized as he started for the door.

"Are you trying to break up with me?" Slade glared as he watched Robin walk away.

"Trying to? No, Slade, I am." Robin stopped before he reached the stairs. "I knew this wasn't going to work, I mean, I don't know a thing about you and I thought that I might be able to learn but you still haven't told me a single thing about yourself. This just, this was never meant to be, Slade, we were too different from the beginning."

"No, Robin, you can't be any more wrong." Slade declared as he started toward Robin, making the boy turn around as he listened to the heavy footsteps. "First of all, we aren't that different from one another which is why we are a perfect couple and why we are going to stay a couple. If you think it's too soon to move in with me then you don't have to, yet, but you will come to your senses soon and come to me when you want to stop wasting your talents, one way or another." Slade stopped in front of Robin, invading his personal space and grabbing his shoulders. "But you will never break up with me, Robin, do you understand that? This relationship isn't over until I say it is. You are _my _boyfriend and my boyfriend only. I allow you to spend time with your friends and play the hero but when it comes down to the truth, you are mine, boy, understand?"

"You have some nerve, Slade." Robin tried to tug out of the man's hold. "If you really think that we're still going to be together, especially when you try to treat me like that, then you are the one that couldn't be any more wrong. I don't belong to you, I don't belong to anyone!" Robin continued to try and pull out of Slade's grip. "Now, let me go!" Robin hit Slade's elbows, forcing them to bend and he released his hold just when Robin tried to tug out of them again.

The force sent Robin stumbling back, hitting the first step and falling backwards, landing awkwardly on the steps and banging his head. "Robin," he moaned and blinked his eyes as he felt a hand on his face but couldn't see anything. He moaned again but couldn't fight as he fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

Robin woke with a painful mutter. He opened his masked eyes slowly to see Slade's masked face, a bit blurry still, and the man's bare chest with a dark background. He was a bit shocked and as his eyes fully refocused he saw that Slade wasn't just bare at the top but he was completely bare, except for his mask, of course. Robin shivered, not in a good way, as his memory of the events before he had become unconscious rushed back to him and it was then that he noticed that he was completely naked aside from his mask as well, which caused a whole new set of shivers up his spine. 

Noticing that he was no longer on the cold floor of Slade's main room but instead had been moved and was now lying under Slade on Slade's bed, Robin started to panic as he knew what Slade was planning; a demonstration of how much he owned Robin. Slade had both of his hands on either side of Robin's head and his knees straddling Robin's hips; the boy was pinned beneath him.

Taking a deep breath to calm his shaking body, Robin shook his head and gripped the sheets tightly by his sides to stop himself from digging his nails into the palms of his hand. Slade nodded his head and trailed a lean finger down the side of Robin's face. "N--" Robin realized how dry his throat was and swallowed to moisten it up a bit so he was able to talk. "No," he managed to cry out softly as he released the sheets and placed his hands on Slade's shoulders to keep him at bay. Slade continued to nod his head and ignored the weak pushes.

"No, n-no," his voice cracked with his fear as he started to protest a bit louder. Slade stopped shaking his head, opting instead to ignore all of Robin's protests to the full extent, and moved a knee in-between Robin's thighs, parting his legs open. "Slade, no, stop it." Robin pushed at Slade's broad shoulders and tried to move away from the man looming over him.

His ineffective shoving turned into fists pounding as he squirmed and kicked, trying in vain to get free from the submissive position. Slade continued to ignore him and grabbed at his hands, pinning them over his head as he forced Robin's legs open wider and pressed closer to him, forcing his knees to bend and give Slade even more access to what the man sought.

"Slade, no, don't do this!" Robin hissed in pain as Slade's hands tightened around his wrists and squeezed hard. Slade knelt in-between Robin's pried open legs and adjusted his hold on Robin's wrists to one hand only so he had one free hand.

Trailing his large hand down Robin's body, he stopped in his path to rub at Robin's nipples, earning a strangled moan out of Robin as the boy continued in vain to try and escape and ignore the pleasant sensations.

"Don't do it, Slade, don't." Robin pleaded as he tried to reach out to the Slade that he had fallen in love with. It's true that not even an hour ago he might have willingly done this with Slade, if the man had asked, but that was before Robin realized how insane Slade really was. Robin bit his lip as Slade pushed his knees up more and he felt his legs start to shake at the awkward angle Slade was forcing them into.

Robin watched as Slade's hand pumped Slade's penis, causing it to become erect and seemingly even bigger than it had been when Robin had taken it into his mouth. Robin's eyes widened as Slade lined his erection up against his puckered hole and met his eyes as Robin continued to stare in horror at the scene. "Please, Slade," Robin begged desperately.

He cried out, his vision blurring at the sudden intrusion as Slade shoved into him at once and continued to push into him. He was thick and long, and Robin could feel himself tearing as Slade roughly intruded into him. The man hadn't even used lube or tried to prepare him with prior stretching. It hurt so much that Robin would rather be shot by the Joker again then be put through this experience.

The man finally stopped moving once he was into Robin to his hilt. Robin was trembling beneath him, virginal tears spilling past his mask as he quietly sobbed. "Slade, please, it hurts, Slade." Robin sobbed as he clenched his eyes closed in an attempt to stop his tears and block out his situation. It was not anything like the fullness and sexual bliss he always read about sex. Still, he opened his eyes, trying to see Slade and trying to will him to stop even though he knew that Slade wasn't going to stop; he had worked in the super hero line of work long enough to know about rape and that rapists never stopped in the middle of the act.

Slade wouldn't meet his gaze so he tried to calm his breathing and relax so he could lessen the pain. Slowly, but before Robin had time to get use to the feeling, Slade pulled out and then quickly pushed back in, electing another cry out of Robin. He settled into a pace and closed his eye as he continued to push in and out of Robin's tight body. He grunted with every thrust, panting warm breath against Robin's face through the slits in his mask.

Robin didn't dare open his eyes again as he tried to endure the rape. Sharp, hot pain radiated from his backside as Slade repeatedly slammed into him, flesh slapping against flesh in a bruising way. He knew he was going to have big bruises where Slade's hips kept hitting him and he was aware of the blood running from his hole. The worst part was that his body kept resisting the repeated penetration, only causing himself more pain and Slade more pleasure.

He breathed harshly through his mouth between his sobs, tasting his salty tears as he desperately tried to tug his hands free and end the rape. It seemed to be going on forever and Robin couldn't stand the rough treatment as Slade sped up and pumped harder into him.

"Slade," Robin moaned in pain and bit his lip as Slade groaned and spilled deep inside him. Slade shuddered for a long moment, vibrating Robin to his bones as he added to the boy's shaking, before stilling. Finally, Slade pulled out, eliciting a cracked cry from Robin.

Robin opened his eyes and looked up at Slade's mask. The man's eye was still closed and his chest was rising and falling with his heavy breathing. Robin looked at his reflection in the shiny black of Slade's mask and saw that he looked like a mess, his face was no doubt red—he couldn't tell looking at the mask—and he could see the tear tracks on his face as he only continued to cry. He didn't care that he was crying though. How could Slade have done that? Taken his virginity in such a way? Two nights ago he had said that he understood that Robin wasn't ready for sex yet and that he wanted it to be special. Rape wasn't special, it was just cruel.

Slade's eye opened slowly and he met Robin's masked eyes. Robin waited, expecting Slade to say something. Whether the man—wasn't a man, he was a monster—would try to apologize or simply start screaming about owning Robin again or something. Instead, Slade simply released Robin's wrists and moved to the edge of the bed and then rose.

Robin brought down his hands and stared at the dark purple bruises already forming on his wrists; Slade's prints embedded into his arms. He turned, feeling numbed and bruised at the same time all over, and watched as Slade got dressed. His clothing had been tossed into a pile on the ground and already the man was starting to click his armor on overtop of the spandex. Underneath all the armor, Robin spotted his own clothes.

Slade finished getting dressed and bent down to pick up Robin's few articles of clothing and turned to face the boy. Robin visibly flinched when Slade looked at him and he closed his eyes as he waited for whatever Slade would do next. He jumped when his clothes hit him in the face and he pushed them to the side as he watched Slade head to the door and leave, slamming the door behind him.

Robin blinked and slowly started to sit up. He was so confused. The man had just raped him, stolen his virginity, and then left him. No threats, no apologizes, nothing. Slade hadn't said a single thing to him after he had just committed such an emotional and physical crime. This was the man that Robin had been dying on the inside to see, the man who had done terrible things merely to get his attention, the same man he thought had changed and that he possibly loved.

Pulling his shirt on, Robin continued to cry. He felt so used, like Slade had done everything simply so he could fuck him. He felt like he was no better than some cheap whore. He wanted to do nothing better but curl into a ball and continue to cry. But he knew he couldn't do that; he still wasn't safe. Slade could have left to grab a gun or chains or something. That thought scared Robin and he pulled on the rest of his clothes, wincing as he pulled on the pants but he tried to ignore the blood trailing down his legs.

Hesitantly, Robin rose from the bed and walked to the door, his body aching with each step. He wanted his friends, he wanted the safety of his room in the Tower, he even wanted Batman. Robin pushed the door open and he was shocked that Slade hadn't even locked the door. Maybe he really only did see Robin as nothing more than a whore and he didn't want to bother trying to keep him or trying to kill him.

Robin pressed himself against the wall, one hand above his belt, ready to pull out his bo-staff, in case Slade showed up. He headed to the main room and stared at the back of Slade's chair. He could see blue sparks flying from the chair and he knew that Slade was working on another invention or weapon.

Ignoring the pain and pushing his thoughts away—how could the man rape him and continue on working like that?—Robin quietly made his way to the stairs. Each step seemed louder than the electrical buzzing of whatever tool Slade was using and the turning gears, but Slade didn't stop working.

Robin looked at Slade as he reached the bottom of the stairs and he froze to see the man staring right at him. His instincts roared at him not to fight and simply take flight, to run as fast as he could and never—"I expect to see you tomorrow night, Robin." Slade announced and turned back to his work.

Listening to his instincts, Robin bolted up the stairs and flung the door open as he ran through the sewers. He pumped his arms and forced his legs to keep moving as he ignored the pain and the adrenaline from his fear took over. He had to get away and he had to stay away. Slade was crazy, that was it, and he had to make sure he never met the madman again.

When Robin finally stopped running, he leaned against the building he had stopped in front of and panted, resting his hands on his knees as he felt his legs shake from exhaustion. Robin wiped tears from his eyes and idly wondered if the pain would ever stop or if he would ever stop crying. He glanced around and was surprised to see that he had run straight to the Tower. He was home and he actually felt like smiling but a smile refused to find his face as he went through the normal routine until he was in his room, ever grateful that his team hadn't tried another intervention.

He stared at his bed; it was inviting and tempting, but he knew he couldn't sleep. He had been raped, he had to record what had happened so he could press charges and…Robin paused in his thoughts and slowly removed his gloves as he looked at the blossoming bruises. He couldn't press charges because he'd have to tell the truth about what had happened. How he had actually thought Slade was better than most villains and could be changed. How he had been so naïve and thought that Slade actually liked him. How he had been so stupid and how Slade had played with his emotions.

Robin stripped his clothes off and headed to his private bedroom as he started his shower. He refused to look at his reflection in the mirror and he stepped into the steaming shower, wiping away all evidence as he scrubbed his body clean. He forced himself to stop crying as he imagined wiping away all memories of Slade. It wasn't working though. No matter how much he scrubbed, he could still feel Slade's weight on him, still feel the man's breath on his face, could still feel how dirty he was.

Eventually, the water turned cold and Robin threw his washcloth and soap to the floor in frustration as he curled up on the tile and stared at the shower head as the water continued to pound down on him, washing away each tear as it appeared.

He hugged himself and threw his head back to bang on the tile wall, wincing as he hit the bump on his head that he had gotten from the stairs. He felt like such an idiot. "If I ever see Slade again, I will stop him and make sure that he ends up in jail for the rest of his life." Robin vowed to himself.

It was like what Bruce had once taught him. Life was like baseball. When life throws a baseball at you, you can either catch it and put a stop to its path or you can duck and let it continue on it's path until it's someone else's problem. Robin closed his eyes as he continued to let the icy water fall over his numbing body. He just hoped that he didn't end up dropping the ball.

* * *

**A.N. **Oh wow! Who saw that coming? ...Oh, really, that many people, huh? Well, still, I thought rape at the third chapter was supposed to be a bit surprising but whatever. Yeah, Slade's a total crazy and you know what I like about writing this? It's that I know that Slade didn't see it as rape! Isn't that interesting? Slade's so crazy that he thought having sex with Robin would make their argument better and that Robin wanted it. Just you guys wait until the next chapter though, then you can see how crazy Slade really is!

Just to let you guys know, I'm planning on sticking to the show, meaning that everything that happens to Slade and Robin in the show, happens in this fic as well. So...that ruined the surprise for the next chapter...


	4. Chapter 4

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin in the beginning with RobinRed X in future chapters  
**Chapter Summary: **Robin's single once more and he can easily forget about Slade and all the bad memories that goes with him, right? Wrong.

* * *

**A New Beginning**

Robin stared up at his ceiling and sighed as he rolled onto his side and smacked his alarm just as it started to ring, not even half a 'beep' making it into the air. He rolled slowly onto his back again and continued to blankly look at the ceiling, his mind running a mile a minute over everything and anything that had absolutely nothing to do with Slade. As he finished another mental mathematical—that should show anyone how desperate he was to keep his mind off of Slade since no one liked doing math in the morning—problem, he forced himself to sit up and look around his room before his masked eyes landed on his digital clock.

It was exactly one minute after six now; none of the other Titans would be up for another two hours at least and he knew that even if he did lie down again, sleep still wouldn't come to him. He hadn't slept at all the entire night. Granted he did only climb into bed at four, terrified at the absurd thought of Slade. It had taken him a full twenty minutes—at the very least—to finally stop shaking and lie still in his bed, mentally chanting that the sheets felt different than Slade's sheets had felt and that he was completely safe sleeping on his back in his room.

He knew no one was getting into his room; the Tower's defense system was too good for that. Also, he was a light sleeper and would probably hear someone in the hallway, especially if they wanted into his room because he had locked it and he would hear a lock picker. Besides, if someone did get into his room, they wouldn't be able to make it to the side of his bed without him being prepared for a fight; his belt was under his pillow, stocked with birdarangs. It was completely ridiculous for him to be so absurd and scared.

Forcing himself to sit up, Robin looked around him room and rubbed at his masked eyes, knowing perfectly well that under the dark edges of his mask would be identical dark lines under his eyes. Still, keeping himself busy and acting on a normal routine would be a good way to keep his mind occupied and off of Slade.

"Slade," Robin glared and stood from his bed. "Slade who?" He called out to the rising sun as he ignored the pain and cramping from his backside. "The only Slade I know is the villain that needs to be stopped and he's nothing to worry about." He tried to convince himself as he continued to speak aloud and headed to his closet. "Slade's not a threat because I'll be able to stop him," he pulled off his white t-shirt and replaced it with his uniformed bright shirt. "With the help of my friends, I can do anything." He added as he pulled his green tights over his boxers and clicked a spare belt over his hips, opting to keep the one under his pillow for good. "It's a new day, Robin," He pulled his cape on over his shoulders and wondered when he had even started to call himself Robin. "It's a new start." He assured himself as he ran his hand through his hair, using the gel to make it spike up. "It's a new beginning to something much better than the day before and everything else that is in the past." He finished his monologue as he pulled on his gloves and strode out of his room.

It was obvious that his morning prep talk didn't actually have an effect of reassuring himself as he took out all of his anger and hurt on the defenseless punching bag. He then continued to work out his frustration and confusion with the weights. And to finish up by working out the last of his fear, he ran on the treadmill.

The last idea wasn't his best as he suddenly felt the cold night air around himself as he ran through the empty streets of Jump, away from the pain, away from Slade. Robin ran faster on the treadmill, trying to outrun his thoughts of reliving the experience. He continued to run, imaging that he was running to catch a football, running to be able to grab the woman and help her to the other side of the street before the bus came, running before Slade caught him in his strong hands and pushed him down into the mattress.

Robin hit the emergency stop on the treadmill and lurched forward, damning Newton's law of motion. He held onto the sides of the treadmill, panting deeply as he closed his eyes and fully focused on catching his breath. It wasn't supposed to be like that, it was never like that with Batman. Batman was always able to repress whatever was bothering him by working out or working on some case and he never relapsed back to what was bothering him. Robin opted to try working on some filing and case work as he left the gym in shambles.

Checking his communicator, Robin saw that it was a little past eight ten so he headed to the kitchen to grab a bite to eat and something to drink before he hit the files. It was always good to check in on his friends and make sure that no one exploded the kitchen anymore.

Walking into the main room, Robin was greeted with the same sight he usually found in the kitchen. Raven was meditating off to the side of the room, an empty cup of tea below her which showed that she had already had her breakfast. Starfire was stirring something that was a dark red with purple chunks on the stove and Robin grimaced at the sight. Then Beast Boy and Cyborg were already up and on the game console, milk, cereal boxes—their only mutual agreement for breakfast food—and a few bowls and spoons on the table in front of them.

"Morning, team," Robin greeted warmly already starting to feel better simply being in his friends presence. Raven opened her eyes to glance at him then went right back to chanting 'Azarath Metrion Zinthos' as she focused on meditating.

"Glorious morning to you, Robin!" Starfire called out cheerfully as she floated up to him on the stairs. "I am almost finished with my zorka berry, um; I believe you call it 'porridge,' would you care to partake in some?" She offered as she grinned.

"No thanks, Starfire; I think I'm just going to grab an apple and a glass of water." Robin smiled and Starfire nodded as she flew back down to the stove and continued to stir as she picked up the salt shaker on the table, stared at it for a moment, and then dumped it into the pot.

"Hey, man," Cyborg called out as he never took his eyes off of the screen. "Want to play winner, and I do mean me, next round?" He asked as his car advanced on the screen. "Oh yeah, there's no way you can catch me now, BB."

"Want a bet?" Beast Boy grinned and dramatically stood up and pressed the red button on his controller. On the screen, his car suddenly shot fire out of its back and flew past Cyborg's.

"No way! When did you get turbo charged?" Cyborg yelled as he dropped his controller. "You've been looking up cheats again, haven't you?" He accused as he dove at Beast Boy, missing him as the boy turned into a hummingbird, dropping his controller onto Cyborg's head. "Beast Boy!" He yelled angrily as he started to chase after the hummingbird as he zipped around the room.

"I think I'll pass on the game offer, guys." Robin smiled as he watched with amusement as his friends chased each other around the room. He grabbed an apple off of the counter and opened a cabinet for a glass. He used the sink to fill the glass to the top and gulped down the glass then refilled it, only then realizing how thirsty he was. Grinning to himself, he knew that his thirst was a sign of his work out so he refilled and guzzled the glass two more times before he was quenched.

"I'm going to be working on a few files for a while." Robin announced to no one in particular and only receiving a nod from Starfire as a response as he walked out of the room. The door closed behind him but he could still hear Cyborg yelling at Beast Boy.

Walking down to his work room, Robin took a bite out of his shiny red apple and hummed lightly to himself as he tossed the apple into the air, caught it in his hand, and tossed it again. He continued his tossing and catching pattern as he slowly traveled to the back rooms of the Tower and into his claimed room.

The door slid open, the lights automatically turning on, and his apple hit the floor with a thud and began to roll into the room.

Robin stared straight into Slade's eye and his legs began to shake. His knees buckled and he fell to the floor on them, slumping against the door as he continued to stare into the empty eye that never looked away from him. The shaking rose from his legs to overtake his entire body and he closed his eyes as he continued to shake.

* * *

Waking up is often a quick experience for Robin and he always knows that when it takes him a few minutes to fully wake up and he has to force himself to open his eyes, then something is terribly wrong. Robin knew that it was one of those terribly wrong moments when his eyes finally succumbed to his wishes and opened. Staring around the room he blinked once and slowly let out a moan as he used his hands to push himself onto his knees. 

He rubbed the half of his face that had been pressed against the floor for a good while and assumed that he had passed out from something. As he looked around the room, he finally recognized that he was in his work room. He slowly stood up, his foot hitting the apple that he had only taken one bite out of and causing it to roll again and hit the wall.

Glancing from the apple up to the wall, Robin shivered and reached a hand out to use as balance against the wall as he stared at the Slade mask surrounded by the uncountable amount of articles around it. Taking a deep breath, Robin tried to push his emotions away and figured out what happened, using his logic over his intuition.

The fact that he had the most emotional stress filled night added with no sleep and two hours of intense workout easily explained why he had passed out, especially since he hadn't gotten any food. It was understandable that he would overreact to seeing Slade's mask and think it was the man himself. It was reasonable that he would get so frightened from seeing his attacker when he was in such a weakened state, start to shake, and pass out.

It was also comprehensible that he would never tell anyone that he had just passed out in fear from seeing Slade's mask. No one would ever know.

Walking into the room, Robin picked up the apple and threw it away. Glancing at his communicator to check the time, he deemed that it would be wise to get some food in him and he suddenly wanted a turkey sandwich. He wasn't running away from his fears or from Slade, he assured himself as he closed his work room door and headed back up to the kitchen.

When he walked in, no one was in the main room so he headed straight for the refrigerator and pulled out some turkey, lettuce, and mayonnaise. When he bent over to pull open the bed drawer, he distinctly heard Cyborg before he actually saw him. "Yo, Robin, what did the punching bag ever do to you?" Robin turned around, the wheat bread in hand and stared at Cyborg as he wondered what he meant. "Really, man, did it insult your mother or something because there's no way I can fix it, we just have to buy a new one now. Didn't I tell you that the punching bag was for hitting, not kicking with your steel toed boots?"

"I did just hit it, Cyborg." Robin replied as he set the bread down and started to put his sandwich together. "I guess I just didn't realize how big the tear was when I left it like that. Can't you just use some duct tape on it? Oh, and would you like a sandwich?" He asked, remembering the manors that Alfred had drilled into him as a child.

"No thanks, man, I ate lunch already. And no, we can't just duct tape it since that tear caused the entire punching bag to split into two. You really went at it, Robin." Cyborg frowned and watched as Robin started to put the food back into their proper places. "Anything you'd like to talk about?"

Robin smiled and closed the refrigerator door. "I'm fine, Cyborg, I just had a bad night last night and it didn't go away when I hit the sack like it usually does."

Cyborg continued to frown but one corner of his mouth twitched up to a grin. "How hard did you hit your bed, Robin? I really would hate to have to be in an order for a new one of those as well." Robin laughed and Cyborg joined in as Robin picked up his sandwich and bit into it when his laughter died down.

"I'm serious though, Cyborg, I just had a rough night." Which was an understatement but Robin was the leader of the team, his teammates were his responsibility, not the other way around; they shouldn't have to be worried about him. "But I'm all better now." He finished his sandwich and got out a new glass and filled it with some milk. "Besides, now that punching bag will think twice about ever insulting my mother again." He smiled as he strode from the room, leaving Cyborg grinning.

As he entered his work room again, he was prepared and better this time. Robin ignored the mask and the newspaper clippings on his wall, which was a lot easier than one would think. But when he went to his desk to begin to work, he frowned.

Everything on his desk was Slade related, from his Sladebots mask, to one of Robin's broken birdarangs, to the file of information Robin had collected on Slade, to the disk that had explained in detail the purpose of creating Red X and how he had done it, step by each betraying yet brilliant step.

It took some time but it was deemed necessary to clear the table and work on someone else. With the Slade items carefully placed in a box,—including the mask that he was only more than eager to take off of the wall—Robin rummaged through his file cabinet until he found the folder on Mad Mod. Recalling the scene his team and he had endured so shortly ago.

Since Slade had been occupied, the Titans hadn't had too much to deal with. Mad Mod, an attempted bank robbery, Overload, Cyborg's car being stolen, Gizmo, and another attempt to rob the same bank; not too busy for a few weeks when Robin was used to dealing with the Joker, Harley, Catwoman, Poison Ivy, Two Face, and the Penguin all within the same week.

Still, Jump City was filled with crime and was the perfect opportunity for Robin to be his own hero, even if he did happen to stumble into making a team. He was still out of Batman's shadow, which had been his main goal, and he was still making Jump City the perfect city. Now that he was the leader of the team, it simply met that he didn't have to go undercover as a normal teenage boy during the day like he had originally planned which meant he didn't have to set up a fake life that he would have to constantly bail out on when trouble started up.

It was a lot simpler and more enjoyable for him to make meta-human and alien friends. Robin grinned as he brought his chair over to his desk and sat, going from Mad Mod's folder to Gizmo's. He knew that his friends were the greatest thing that ever happened to him.

* * *

Robin bolted awake in a gasp of terror. He hadn't even realized that he had fallen asleep but he was so glad that it was all just a dream, a horrible dream. He tried to catch his breath as fear inducing sweat continued to run down his face. Hearing his door open behind him, Robin spun around to see Cyborg. 

"It's him," Cyborg frowned. "It's Slade."

* * *

It wasn't hard for Robin to act like he hated Slade's guts, but when he had first stepped into the main room to see his friends huddled below a giant Slade on the screen he had immediately feared for the worst. He felt Slade's eye boring into him and he knew that the man was probably calling just to yell at him for not showing up again like he had ordered. Really though, anyone who was sane—which Slade obviously wasn't, Robin thought bitterly—wouldn't have actually expected Robin to go to Slade after what had happened. 

Robin had really thought that Slade had told the Titans everything for a moment before Slade started to speak. "Good morning, Teen Titans. I do hope I didn't wake you."

"What are you an insomniac? Who calls at five in the morning--" Beast Boy faltered when Raven elbowed him but Slade had ignored him, opting to keep his eye on Robin like the rest of his team wasn't there.

He could practically feel Slade's eye running over him, undressing him, and he started to feel vulnerable under that intense stare. Robin bit out, in order to hide how uncomfortable he felt, "What do you want?"

"Well, that's precisely what you've been trying to find out, isn't it? And in spite of all your efforts, you're still in the dark about my intentions." Slade was mocking Robin in more than one way even though the other ways were hidden to his teammates. "Disappointing, Robin; I expected a little more from you."

Robin suddenly snapped with his anger. "Like I care what you--"

"But since you've been unable to discover my plan, I suppose I'll just have to reveal it myself." Slade interrupted Robin's tantrum as he showed two of his Sladebots standing next to a large object covered in a tarp. "I'm sure you're all familiar with the concept of a chronoton detonator." The tarp was pulled away to reveal the large, egg-like piece of machinery with a couple of red lights set into its surface. The upper portion suddenly opened toward the ceiling, giving a view of the circuitry inside and more sets of the red lights.  
"No!" Cyborg cried out as Starfire gasped.

"Uh-oh," Raven's eyes widened as she stared at the screen.

**"**No way!" Beast Boy cried out dramatically as he turned to Starfire, seeking an explanation. "Um, what's a crouton detonator?"

"It eradicates all chronotons within a localized area, utterly destroying the temporal component of the space-time continuum." Starfire explained as she clenched her hands together, as though she was praying to someone on her planet for help.

Beast Boy hummed in confusion until Raven helpfully dubbed down the explanation for him. "It stops time. Permanently," Beast boy cried out and fell over in a dramatic fainting gesture.

"If he triggers that thing downtown, it'll freeze-frame the entire city." Cyborg claimed unhelpfully as Robin continued to stare directly into Slade's cold eye.

He couldn't believe the man was so cold. Robin broke up with him, with a good reason to, and the man had raped him. Wasn't that enough? Why did Slade have to go to these lengths? Was he planning this the entire time while he was still dating Robin? "Tell me where!" Robin demanded as he glared at the man, disgust and anger clear on his face.

"You're a clever boy, Robin." Slade purred and Robin fought the urge to throw up. "I'm sure you and your little friends can figure it out." And Robin realized that was why Slade was really doing this. He was still upset that Robin had chosen his friends over him. "However, since I control the detonation," Slade waved the controller on the screen. "Time is not on your side." He glared and then the screen filled with static. Robin slammed a fist onto the control panel and then turned around to order his team.

"Fan out! Find it! Shut it down!" Robin commanded as he started to storm out of the room. He'd head to the first place he first met Slade; the docks. That way he could get to the man before his friends did and stop Slade and his plans. He knew that Slade was probably going to try and hurt his friends; the farther they were from the man, he better.

Things didn't go as he planned as he had to argue with his friends to even be allowed to go. Then Raven had figured out that Slade had been at the docks like Robin had suspected. When the small army of Sladebots attacked, Robin knew that all of his suspicions were correct; Slade was going to try to hurt his friends.

Robin took care of all of the Sladebots himself, to prevent his friends from being harmed. Then things only seemed to get worse once they used Starfire's allergies to find Slade's secret passageway down to the sewers.

When Cinderblock had grabbed Robin and isolated him from his friends, Robin felt like things were looking up since he was back on track on hunting Slade down himself. He had suspected that Slade had used a different lair that he was always talking about but wasn't too surprised to see that Slade was in the same lair.

Since Slade hadn't brought up anything about what had happened the night before or anything about their time together when they were a couple, Robin was able to focus more on the fight, which didn't seem to help too much. Slade had obviously been holding back on him when they were sparring. Either that, or Slade was still angry about the breakup and using Robin like Robin had used the punching bag.

He had thought it was over when he had gotten a hold of the controller but then Slade had revealed the trap of getting the probes into his friend. Robin then thought that Slade was going to use the probes as a threat to get the Titans to leave the team, but he had been so wrong. Slade still wanted him, solely him, and he was going to use his friends to keep Robin with him.

"So, do we have a deal?" Slade asked as he watched Robin. Robin wanted to do nothing more than kick Slade right where it would hurt the most. The nerve that that man had to get exactly what he wanted by doing such a thing as blackmailing Robin, with his friends' lives, for Pete's sake.

"You know the answer to that." Robin spat out bitterly. "I'm not a monster." He glared at Slade accusingly.

"Neither am I, Robin." Slade paced toward Robin but the boy held his ground despite his urge to run. "I'm simply a man who knows what he wants and how to get it. It doesn't matter what way I use as long as it is to my advantage. Besides, no harm has been done," Slade bypassed Robin and the boy continued to stare straight ahead, not bothering to turn around. "Yet," Slade returned behind Robin and his arm shot out to Robin's side, presenting him with a white box tied neatly with a black ribbon.

"I'd like you to change into this, Robin. Call it your new better and more appropriate uniform." Robin begrudgingly took the box and untied the ribbon, faintly noticing how heavy the box was. "It'll show everyone exactly who you belong to."

"I don't belong to anyone." Robin hissed as he removed the top and stared at the pieces of armor and dark spandex underneath.

"Since you're my apprentice now, Robin, I expect you to look the part. Now, change and shed those disturbingly bright things." Slade backed away and Robin took a deep breath as he turned around.

"Where exactly should I change?" Robin asked. He wasn't about to strip right in front of Slade.

"You can hang your clothes on that pipe over there when you're done." Slade commented as he gestured over to a bunch of pipes, deliberately avoiding the question.

Robin took another deep breath to try and calm himself. "I'm not going to change right in front of you." Suddenly a spotlight overhead turned on and encircled Robin in a beam of light.

"And why not? It's not like you've got something I've never seen before." Robin felt his hands shake as he clenched the box tighter. "Besides, you can keep your boxers on." Slade added. "Now change, Robin. I would hate to have to kill your friends already because you couldn't comply with your first order."

Right then Starfire's voice sounds from Robin's communicator in his belt. "Robin?" She called out with worry. "Robin? Robin, please respond!" Robin reached into his belt and pulled out his communicator. "Robin, please. You must answer!" She sounded desperate. "Robin!"

"Hand it over, Robin." Slade ordered as he stepped out of the shadows and into the spotlight, his hand outstretched. Robin regretfully handed him his communicator. "Hand over your belt as well." Robin unclicked his belt and gave it to Slade. "Now, the rest of your uniform, starting with your mask," Robin froze for a minute as his hand reached up to his mask. Slade turned his back and simply stood still. Robin took the opportunity to quickly swap masks and then handed Slade his old one when the man ordered him to do so.

"Please respond!" Starfire begged as Robin took off his shirt and slipped out of his boots. He mechanically slipped out of his outfit and into Slade's tailored uniform as he ignored Slade as the man paced outside the ring of light, his eyes taking Robin's sight in as he started to click the metal pieces into place. "Robin, where are you?" She called out in the darkness as Robin fitted the last piece into place.

Slade stepped into the light, behind him this time. "I know it seems bad now, but trust me, you'll learn to like it." Slade's voice leaves no room for argument but Robin didn't feel like arguing anyway. Slade had already made him change in the open but would the man make him do anything else like that or anything worse than that? Robin had agreed to be the man's apprentice to save his friends' lives, but he hadn't agreed to be Slade's boyfriend again. Even though he knew that if that was what it would take to keep his friends alive, he would.

The lights shut off suddenly and Robin simply stared off into the darkness, finding it fitting for his current situation. "Ready to begin your new and better life, Robin?" Slade asked and Robin suddenly felt the man behind him.

"I'll never be ready to live like this, but I'll put up with this lifestyle for now. Besides, I won't be here long." Robin growled as he tensed up when he heard Slade's footsteps fall into a pattern. No doubt the man was pacing him since he was alerting Robin of his movement.

"My dear boy, you've been isolating yourself from your friends simply because you wanted to be alone with your thoughts; your thoughts of me." Slade smirked behind his mask as Robin bitterly listened. He could see how upset Robin was at this deal, thanks to how easily his eye adjusted to the darkness. "You've been preparing yourself for this transition ever since I decided that you would become my apprentice, back when we first properly met." Slade stopped circling the boy and drew closer to him from behind once more. "My apprentice," he paused for a moment, "and also so much more to me," he bent down to whisper into his ear "Lover."

"I am not your lover, Slade." Robin hissed as he tensed his shoulders even more to stop from turning around and just hitting blindly. He didn't like Slade being so close to him. He hated it, in fact.

Slade placed both of his hands on Robin's shoulders and suddenly a few lights flickered on, showing the hallway that led to the room where Slade and Robin use to watch movies and past that, Slade's bedroom. "Really, Robin, we're so much more than boyfriends now, wouldn't you agree?" He purred. "We're past that and besides, simple boyfriends don't live with each other."

"You're forcing me to live with you." Robin glared at the floor as he tried to not tremble under the large hands on him. The same hands that had been on him before, holding him down cruelly, and pinning him to the bed; he tried not to think about the feeling or anything else but his hatred of Slade. If he focused on his hatred, then it would block out his fear. "Besides, we're not even boyfriends anymore; I broke up with you."

"I told you before that we're broken up when I say so." Slade squeezed Robin's shoulders and the boy bit back a cry of fear. The neck plate did nothing to protect his shoulders from Slade's wrath. "And I'm not forcing you to do anything, Robin." Slade disagreed as he eased up on his hold. "You're free to leave, if you want to, just like I'm free to kill your friends, if I want to." He reminded Robin of the fresh deal.

"Just show me to my room." Robin clenched his fists at his sides. If he focused on his anger for the man instead of his fear then he might be able to survive until he figured out how to get out of the situation. He was just lucky that he had more anger for Slade than fear currently.

Slade chuckled as he leaned down next to Robin's ear. "Eager to get to the bedroom, are we?" Robin ignored him as he turned his head away from Slade and glared into the darkness. "Alright then," Slade released Robin. "Follow me to our bedroom."  
"'Our bedroom'?" Robin repeated in shock and slight horror. "You can't tell me that you don't have a single extra bedroom in this place?"

"I do," Slade stopped and looked over his shoulder as he folded his hands behind his back. The trigger was in plain view for Robin to see as Slade made the threat subtle enough to simply be a warning. "But I thought you would like sharing a room with me since you already know where my bedroom is. Please inform me if I was wrong."

Robin clenched his teeth together as he shook his head. "I don't mind," he seethed. So, that was how it was going to be. Every time Robin would try to argue against the man, Slade would threaten him. Some deal this had turned out to be. Not only did he have to be the man's apprentice, he had to be the man's boyfriend, more than boyfriend, by Slade's definition. He no longer held any interest in that position, nor the consequences—or benefits as Slade would likely see it—of that position, of either position really. But Robin didn't have a choice, not a real one, at least.

He begrudgingly followed Slade and when the man stopped by his bedroom he began to shake in anticipated fear. He couldn't be in that room again, not so soon, he couldn't go through that so soon.

"Here's the bedroom." Slade spoke, dryly, as he opened the door than closed it again. "It hasn't changed since you last saw it, even though you missed seeing it last night." Robin could see Slade's glare even though the man had his back to him. The fact that Slade was angry with him made Robin relax a bit since he thought that Slade might not be the type of guy that had sex with someone when he was angry with them. Robin actually hoped that Slade was angry enough to make him sleep on the couch or something like that.

"Now, before we begin our training for today, let's get you something to eat." Slade spun around suddenly, surprising Robin enough to force him to take a few steps back. "I know that you haven't taken a break from stopping to find me since you began this morning. I can't have you passing out from lack of food or leave your body without the proper nutrients and protein. Follow me,"

Robin swallowed his sudden paranoia that Slade had somehow known he had passed out the day before as he followed Slade further down the hall. Slade was probably just stating that, he couldn't possibly have known that Robin actually had passed out.

Slade stopped suddenly at a door and Robin almost ran into him but he managed to stop himself from touching the man. "After you, Robin," Slade offered as he opened the door and moved to the side. Robin glared. He didn't want to leave his back open to Slade. It was never wise to turn your back on your opponent and he wasn't sure if Slade would attack him or not; it might have been some sort of sick training lesson.

Hesitantly, Robin stepped through the door and his eyes widened as he looked around the room. It looked like a normal kitchen. There was a refrigerator, a stove, a microwave, an oven, a small island where food could be prepared, and a small table with only two chairs across from each other. The only strange thing was that the floor was cement without any covering, like most rooms in Slade's lair, and there was a Sladebot making something by the stove.

"Take a seat, Robin, you're food should be finished shortly." Slade motioned to the table and Robin sat as directed. He watched as Slade strode to one of the cabinets above the stove and pulled out a glass. "You don't happen to have any food allergies, do you? And you're not lactose intolerant, right?" Slade asked as he opened the refrigerator and pulled out a container of milk.

"No," Robin replied as he watched Slade pour him a tall glass of milk. Slade replaced the liquid and then sauntered over to the table, glass in hand. He slid the glass across the table and it stopped directly in front of Robin, not a single drop spilling.

"Drink up," Slade commented as he took his own seat across from Robin and simply stared at him. Robin lifted the glass and swirled the white liquid in the glass. "I can assure you, Robin, that it's not poisoned and neither is the food. You're not very useful to me dead."

"Thanks for the reassurance." Robin glared at the milk but determinedly guzzled down half the glass, secretly hoping that it would be poisoned and simply end the experience before it really began.

The Sladebot finished its job at the stove and appeared by Robin's side with a plate filled with a variety of steamed vegetables and a piece of chicken with some spices. Robin's eyes widened when the Sladebot set the plate down in front of him and he looked up at Slade, expecting some sort of trick.

"Did you think I was going to starve you?" Slade asked as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Believe me, Robin, that's the last thing your body needs more of." Robin narrowed his eyes but began to cut and eat the chicken. It was in need of a bit of ketchup but not bad. Slade's robots could at least cook better than Starfire, which wasn't really hard, but still.

"Don't you eat?" Robin asked as he noticed that Slade had simply been watching him eat the entire meal.

"I eat at odd times." Slade remarked. "Now, hurry up and finish your meal. I want to get in a few hours of training today."

* * *

"You did well for your first day, Robin, but I hope you realized that today was child's play; I simply wanted to see what you can and cannot do. We'll start your real training tomorrow." Slade mentioned as he led Robin out of the main room. 

Robin swiped the bit of perspiration that had started to form on his forehead off with the back of his glove and followed after Slade. The workout wasn't too rough, it was actually easier than his fight with Slade that he had earlier that day, but he was still tired since he had been running around all day from such an early hour. He was looking forward to a shower and getting some rest.

Slade opened the bedroom door and moved to the side to allow Robin entry. The boy nodded his thanks since he had deemed earlier that day to speak to Slade only when absolutely necessary and still he only gave short one syllable answers. He entered the room, a chill suddenly running down his back, as he stared at the bed where he had been assaulted. He turned around and felt his blood turn to ice as he watched Slade slide into the room and close the door behind him.

"Here we are again, Robin." Slade gestured around the room. "Just you, me, none of your friends, and a bed; perfect, wouldn't you agree?" He asked as he took a step toward Robin and watched with slight amusement slight annoyance as Robin took an equal sized step away from him. "I know we didn't exactly end on great terms, Robin, and I will admit that my attitude was partially to blame, but why don't we just let bygones be bygones. I said some things I didn't really mean and so did you. You are forgiven and so am I." Slade stated matter of factly as he began to remove his armor.

"I don't think so, Slade." Robin hissed out as he crossed his arms over his chest, assuring himself that he was not hugging himself. "Actions tend to speak louder than words." He didn't even try to hide his hurt and anger as he spoke.

"Exactly, Robin, so," Slade took a few steps closer and Robin panicked as he tried to back away but hit the bed. Slade grabbed Robin by the hips and held him close as Robin tried to push at his chest. "Let me tell you what I can't fully articulate." He rubbed his erection against Robin's stomach to emphasize what he meant.

"No, Slade, let me go." Robin continued to push as he struggled to get away. Slade let him go and Robin fell back, onto the bed, with the force of his own push. His eyes widened as he realized he had just lost the advantage of standing and he backed up on the bed as Slade began to crawl forward onto it. "Stay back, Slade." Robin warned as he hit the headboard.

"You haven't forgiven me, have you, Robin?" Slade asked as his eye narrowed and he stopped crawling forward as he sat up and folded his hands over his chest, looking even more intimidating than usual. "That makes me quite angry, Robin, since I didn't hold your words against you like you are against me."

"I don't care about what you said before, Slade, that hardly matters to me." Robin stated as he gripped the sheets tightly in his hands. "What matters is that you--"  
"If it doesn't matter than you forgive me." Slade declared. "So get undressed and stop trying to argue with me."

"Slade, will you listen to me for a few minutes?" Robin shouted as he was suddenly powered by his anger. "I don't care if you say you own me or anything like that because it's not true and it will never happen. I care that you deliberately felt like trying to prove that by--"

"I beg to differ, Robin, since I obviously do own you." Slade interrupted again. Robin glared as he opened his mouth, ready to shout again, but Slade reached into his belt and pulled out the trigger. "Answer me this, Robin, whose colors are you wearing?" Robin closed his mouth and simply glared at Slade. "Whose colors, Robin?" Slade pressed on, not taking Robin's silence as an answer.

"Yours," Robin spat.

"And whose bed are you in?" He continued.

"Yours," If Robin had Superman's powers than Slade would be nothing more than a crispy pile of ash.

"And who do you belong to?" Slade finally asked.

"Not you." Robin crossed his arms over his chest and glared, challenging Slade to try and make him say otherwise. He was surprised when Slade chuckled and placed the trigger back into his belt.

"I'll never get tired of that thickhead of yours, Robin." Slade shook his head, showing that he was rather amused. "Now, why don't you be a good boy and strip for me, but this time, don't stop at your boxers." Slade purred.

"There is no way I'm going to--" Robin began but closed his mouth as Slade suddenly reached forward and wrapped an arm around his waist as his other arm took off his neck plate.

"If you don't want to do a strip show for me, then I'll simply strip you myself, like you're my little gift." Slade continued to purr, obviously not put off by Robin's lack of enthusiasm or willingness.

"Stop, Slade, stop," Robin pushed at the hand as it started to edge up the back of his shirt. "Alright, I'll strip by myself." Robin moved off of the bed and turned to glare at Slade. The man settled against the headboard, his shirt magically gone, and stroked his abs in a seductive manner.

"Go on, Robin," He encouraged as his eye stared intently at Robin.

Gulping and suddenly nervous as well as scared, Robin continued from where Slade left off and bent over to undo the protective metal plates on his legs, his boots, and his black socks. So far it wasn't so bad. He stopped to look at Slade and bit his lip as he eyed the large bulge in the man's clingy pants.

He took a deep breath and pulled his shirt out from under his belt but hesitated before he did anything else. "Slade, can we…not tonight?" He asked as he concentrated on not having his hands shake.

"And why is that, Robin?" Slade asked as he continued to stroke up and down his chiseled abs.

"I have a headache?" Robin asked unconvincingly.

"Try again." Slade replied lazily as his hands ran down to his belt and he unclicked it, showing that he had no plans in stopping.

"Um," Robin knew he was just fishing around for an excuse as much as Slade did. "I want a night to get accustomed to my new surroundings?"

"You've been in my lair before, Robin." Slade's hand dipped under the waistband of his pants.

Robin gulped as he watched Slade's hand start to move up and down under his pants. "Yeah but I've never spent the night here before."

"Well, whose fault is that?" Slade accused as he moaned quietly and continued to stroke himself. "Now stop trying to put this off and get undressed already." Slade ordered as he narrowed his eye.

"Slade, please don't make me. I don't want to--" Robin stopped himself when Slade flashed the trigger. Not exactly a threat, but a simple reminder of what can happen if Robin angers Slade.

Robin shivered, lifting his shirt over his head and tossing it to the floor. He continued on to his new belt and carefully undid it as he let it slip from his hands and land on the floor with a clang. That was how it was, he realized once again, still unfamiliar with the idea. Even any hints of disobeying or arguing with Slade would lead to a threat against his friends. And a threat could easily become real with someone with such a short temper and attitude like Slade. His hands shook as he pushed his pants down to his ankles and let them slip the rest of the way down so he could step out of them.

"I know I was rather quick the last time, Robin, and I apologize for not getting you off as well, but I've been reading up on techniques on the internet to help." Slade talked as his eye greedily watched Robin strip and his hand continued to pump steadily. He felt it was even better watching Robin strip from the black clothes. The contrast as his pale skin appeared under the dark colors delighted him. "I even got lubricant this time to help make my entry smoother and easier for you."

"Thanks," Robin couldn't help but frown as he fingered the waistband of his boxers. He suddenly realized that they were the last things he had that reminded him of Batman, since there were little black bats on the otherwise white fabric. He didn't want to take them off.

Slade stood up and Robin froze as he watched Slade's every moment. Slade opened up the single drawer that his bedside table contained and reached inside to reveal the tube of new lube. He ripped the plastic from it and then tossed it on the bed then turned to face Robin. He easily pushed his pants and underwear down at the same time then straightened again, showing off his erection as it curved up to lie flat against his stomach.

"Come here, Robin." Slade motioned with his finger for Robin to come closer and Robin started to take deep breaths as he slowly moved toward Slade. He stopped a few steps in front of Slade and stared at the man's chest, not wanting to look at his face but afraid that if he looked down…

"Relax, Robin," Slade's hand cupped his face and he involuntarily shivered at the contrast that warm touch was sending through his body. "Are you cold?" Robin didn't respond since, yeah, the room was cold, but that wasn't exactly why he was shivering. "Don't worry, Robin, I'll get you warmed up." Slade's other hand moved to Robin's boxers and tugged them down until they slid freely on their own to puddle around Robin's feet.

Robin felt his face heat up as he knew that Slade was no doubt looking at his…He idly wondered if he was going to have to explain to Slade why he wasn't as excited as Slade was. Maybe, if he was lucky,—which, admittedly, he wasn't—he could die of embarrassment.

Slade didn't comment though. Instead, he simply placed his hand on Robin's hip and started to stroke his hipbone with his thumb. The hand on Robin's face moved from his cheek to his chin and Robin looked up at Slade since he couldn't really fight against the man's grip. "Don't worry, Robin, it'll be better this time. The first time is usually quick for couples since there's so much eagerness and excitement involved. You'll see that the more we do this, the better we'll get. Practice does make perfect, after all." Slade encouraged as he started to pull Robin toward the bed.

"Lay down on your back, make yourself comfortable." Slade suggested and Robin hesitantly did so. He felt as stiff as a board as he stared at the ceiling, his hands tightly at his sides, and his legs pressed together in hopes of keeping Slade out.

"Relax, Robin, or else the lubricant won't even be much of a help." Slade chided as he crawled on the bed, overtop of Robin. His strong thighs were once again straddling Robin's hips and the boy started to count to ten as he exhaled and then inhaled, trying to force his body to relax as he prepared himself for the oncoming rape.

Slade unscrewed the cap on the lubricant and squeezed out a large amount of the unscented stuff. He rubbed it between his fingers and thumb then started to coat his member with it as he recapped the tube and placed it on top of the side table. He brushed his hand over Robin's limp boyhood and Robin instantly hardened a little with a gasp of surprise as he mentally cursed his excitable teenaged body.

Wiggling a hand between Robin's thighs, Slade spread Robin's legs apart and moved in-between him and rubbed the excess lube off of his fingers and around Robin's puckered hole as he lifted one of Robin's legs to his shoulder. He rubbed the soft skin behind Robin's knee and trailed down to his soft, fleshy butt. With a quick squeeze he moaned his appreciation then lined up his erection and pushed forward.

Robin yelled loudly and tried to move away from the intrusion, away from Slade. Slade easily grabbed Robin's hips and held him in place as he pushed steadily forward until he was flush against Robin's ass, cock seated fully inside of him. Robin's head arched on the pillow, his features twisted in pain as the tendons stood out on his neck while he bit his lip until he drew blood, to keep himself from screaming some more. His slightly erect member had wilted entirely due to the pain.

"So tight, so hot," Slade moaned in Robin's ear, as if describing the joy he was experiencing was supposed to help Robin. "Tell me when you're ready for me to move, Robin, and I'll start." Robin was at least grateful that Slade was giving him some time to get used to the painful filling sensation this time.

He took the time to calm his breathing, relaxing his clenching muscles and trying to accept Slade's huge cock. It wasn't working too well and Slade was apparently on the edge of killing someone if Robin didn't give him the okay soon, judging by the way he was gripping the pillow on both sides of Robin's head. "O—okay," Robin panted.

"Ah, god," Slade gasped as he immediately pulled out and then slammed back in, making Robin tug at the sheets to contain his painful cries. Robin was glad that Slade still believed that masks were so important, his mask hid the tears in his eyes as Slade continued to rock his body with every single thrust. "So good, Robin, you feel so good."

It was strange to hear Slade talk during sex since the last time he hadn't said a single thing before, during, or after. He was probably only doing it because of something he had read off of the internet. Robin grunted as Slade pushed exceptionally hard into him and closed his eyes, opting to just try and tune it out like he had done the first time.

Robin tried counting the thrusts but he kept loosing track as Slade changed the pace a few times. He then tried to focus on something else but there wasn't really anything else to focus on besides Slade's grunts and the sound of skin slapping against skin. Robin detachedly noticed that it didn't hurt as much this time as it had the first. It still hurt—oh god did it burn—but there was a slightly pleasant sense of friction as Slade's pace picked up speed again. Unfortunately, with Slade, when his pace increased so did his pressure.

Robin turned his head to the side and opened his eyes as he gasped and panted. He separated himself from the action and decided to wonder if it was just Slade and him rocking back and forth or if Slade was rocking the entire bed. But when Slade exploded inside him, his hot seed bursting deeper into his body, Robin couldn't detach himself from the pain and he screamed as he pulled at the sheets some more.

Slade fell to his elbows and panted heavily through his mask, his breath cascading over Robin. He grunted as he extracted himself from Robin and then rolled over onto his back next to Robin. Robin looked back up at the ceiling and tried to hold back his tears, keeping them in his eyes, as he ignored Slade. But then Slade's hand suddenly fell on his stomach and he tensed as he looked at Slade from the corner of his eye.

Slade's hand continued to trail over his stomach and Slade sat up unexpectedly and glared at Robin's bare stomach. "You didn't get off," he stated as he removed his hand from Robin as though it was burned.

Robin didn't respond. What was he supposed to say to that? Sorry that I didn't any pleasure out of you raping me?

"Damn it," Slade cursed as he rolled off the bed and hurriedly collected his clothes and pulled them all on. He slammed the door behind him as he left, once again leaving Robin, naked and alone on the bed.

Robin finally stopped holding back his tears and crawled off the bed, wincing once again at the unfamiliar ache, and headed to the connected bathroom door in the corner of the room. He used some toilet paper to clean the lube, semen, and tiny amount of blood from himself. He reentered the room and pulled on his boxers, finding a bit of comfort in them. Looking around the room, Robin wiped some tears off of his face and then crawled onto the farther side of the bed, under the lonely white sheet on the bed.

It took Robin a few hours before sleep finally hit him and his tears didn't stop even then.

* * *

**A.N. **Thus ends day one of Robin's apprenticeship! Poor boy, I feel really bad for him because I truely belive that Robin was Slade's apprentice for at least a week. I'm not going to do a day a chapter, I'll probably do the first full day, parts of the other days, the day when Robin steals for Slade for the first time--aka 'Apprentice Part II--and then the final fight or somethings like that. Tell me what you guys think so far. Oh, and before I forget, this was a really long chapter and I wouldn't suspect another one at the length anytime soon. It was a fluke, really. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin in the beginning with RobinRed X in future chapters  
**Chapter Summary: **Robin's first full day of being Slade's apprentice. It's hard, confusing, and he really just wants to fall asleep and get the day over with.

* * *

**The Open Cage**

The sky was a dark purple and shaking. Voices were coming from every direction, from the past, from the left, from behind, yet he couldn't make out a single word. Robin turned his head, trying to find where the voices were coming from, but couldn't see anything but the purple sky and the black outlines of the cage he was in, the cage without a top. He could easily climb up it and escape, but the elegant purple sky made him want to stay put.

He sat down and pressed against a few of the sturdy cage bars as he tried to make sense of the oncoming downfall of words. He was starting to make some things out. He could hear his name he just couldn't tell who was calling it and where they were. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and tried to concentrate.

"Robin, it's time to get up." He moaned and buried his head into the soft pillow that seemingly appeared from nowhere. He was so warm, comfortable, and he wanted to stay asleep, something said it was better for him to remain asleep. "Robin, you have to get up." Robin shook his head, snuggling it deeper into his pillow. "Robin," a hand was shaking him now.

Regrettably, Robin turned onto his back and opened his eyes. Slade loomed over him and Robin screamed as he moved away and promptly fell off the bed with a groan. "Good morning to you too," Slade greeted dryly as he walked around the bed and stared at Robin, tangled up in the sheet he had managed to pull off the bed while he fell.

"Wha—what's--" Robin blinked and licked his dry lips as his dream finally faded away and he was thrown harshly back to reality. "What's up, Slade?" Robin tried to smile as he pulled the sheet off of himself and placed it on the bed.

Slade stared at Robin for a bit longer. "I'm going to ignore that idiotic teenaged question and excuse you from it since you were obviously still stuck inside your subconscious dream world. Now, go get a shower and get dressed in your uniform. I want to see you in the kitchen in twenty minutes." Robin nodded as he smoothed the sheet over the bed to keep his mind over the fact that he was standing before Slade in only his boxers and had embarrassed himself so early in the morning. "And don't worry about making the bed, my Sladebots have to change the sheets anyways."

Robin lifted his hands away from the sheets and watched as Slade left, the door slamming and echoing in his hollow heart. He knew that the sound of a door slamming shut would haunt him forever, even if therapy helped him forget this experience.

Sighing, Robin rubbed a hand over his slightly covered face. It was too early to be depressed and filled with angst, he decided as he walked around the bed and into the bathroom. He slid Slade's glass shower door to the side and turned on the spray, turning the temperature up to as hot as he could stand it, and then climbed in, closing the glass behind him.

Robin bowed his head and relaxed as the water poured over him. He smiled as the glass doors soon covered over with steam. He absentmindedly started to trace little patterns into the steam; bats, a giant 'T', a bird, a game controller, anything that came to his mind that he figured he couldn't butcher too much with his lack of artistic skill.

He began to hum, tunelessly and without a real rhythm, just a happy little hum as he finished up his shower. It was nice, to wash all of his troubles away, even if only for a limited time.

* * *

"You can do better than that, Robin, I know you can. Stop holding back," Slade hissed as he stood above Robin. It was the third time in the past hour that Robin had found him on his back, the wind knocked out of him, and Slade standing over him with a disappointed attitude. 

Robin groaned as air finally traveled through his lungs once more. He forced himself to sit up and glared at Slade as he shakily got to his feet.

"I'm beginning to rethink taking you in as an apprentice, Robin; you're not nearly as skilled as I originally thought. What a waste of nano probes." Slade sighed and took a step back. Robin growled and clenched his hands into fists at his side.

"If I had a bo-staff…" He began but cut himself off, knowing that arguments didn't differ Slade's mind at all.

"But you don't and like I've said there will be times that you won't have weapons. You're skilled at the bo-staff, I'll give you that, and you know more than the basics for martial arts, but you need to be even better." Slade took a few more steps back. "So prove to me your worth. Again,"

And just like that, a small army of Sladebots was surrounding Robin once more and he was forced to be on guard. He collected the rest of his breath, still slightly panting, and slid into a defensive stance. He had learned from the first round that it was better to wait for the enemy to make the first move and not to blindly rush into a battle.

Three jumped at him at once and he flipped into the air, not showing any hint of the joy he felt at watching the robots hit each other since that had cost him in the second round. He landed outside the group and quickly delivered a kick to the back of one Sladebot, sending it to crash into another like a short domino affect.

Quick on his feet, Robin spun around and grabbed the advancing fist of the Sladebot and used the momentum to pull him behind him and threw him into the Sladebot behind him. "Stop," Slade ordered and the Sladebots all froze, one with its leg outstretched in a kick aimed to Robin's back and another with its fist an inch away from Robin's gut.

"Robin, you're still holding back. Stop wasting my time; hit them hard and hit them fast. No more ridiculous flips and back kicks when you can do an efficient block and counterattack. I am not impressed with how high you can jump or how many times you can flip. Now show me something that can convince me not to just kill your worthless friends and stop your training now." Slade commanded. "Continue,"

Snarling, Robin quickly moved to the side and delivered a quick kick straight through a Sladebots torso and back out. He grabbed the sputtering Sladebot by its twitching arm and whipped it around to slam into two Sladebots behind him.

One hit him in the back and he stumbled forward, groaning, but quickly returned to his growling form and dropped to the floor as he spun his legs around and brought down the four circling Sladebots by knocking their feet out from under them. He pushed himself up again and didn't stop to think as he screamed and pulled his hand back and delivered a powerful punch to a nearby Sladebot's head, sending it flying off of its shoulders.

He panted and kept his hands up and clenched into fists as he looked around himself at the twitching and a few with sparks flying as an added bonus Sladebots on the ground. "Finally, Robin," Slade folded his arms over his chest and glared down at the boy. "It took you long enough but I think you might have proved that I wasn't wrong when I chose you. Really though, from now on, I expect better. It took you a few minutes to defeat my bots before there should be no reason that it took you three tries to finally defeat this small group."

"I had my bo-staff that time. Your robots are made out of a very dense metal that hurts, a lot, to hit." Robin growled as he shook out his fist. "I won't be hitting anything else for the rest of the day because of that one hit. In a battle, something like that would cost me my life."

"That's why you should have used more kicks. Your boots are covered with steel for more than just a fashion statement." Slade critiqued as he unfolded his hands. "And you'd best rethink your plans for not using that hand for the rest of the day. You're not even close to being finished. It took you ten minutes to defeat a group of thirteen; unacceptable." Robin bit his lip as he held in the urge to comment that Slade was counting the time that he had used to stop the fight and critique.

Slade took out a small device from his belt and pressed a few buttons on the tiny gadget. Slowly, the defeated Sladebots stood, the few that couldn't were dragged into the darkness and prepared ones showed up to keep the number the same. "Once your time reaches under three minutes, and keep in mind that I'm being very lenient with you since a real fight is usually over in two, then you can be finished with this for the day." Robin opened his mouth, ready to argue how unfair that was and how Slade couldn't possibly expect him to decrease his time as he only became more fatigued with every battle and his enemies already had the advantages of being robotic, replaceable, and—"Begin,"

* * *

"Two minutes and fifty eight seconds. It took you long enough, but you finally seemed to manage not to disappoint me, Robin. Congratulations," The last remark was pure sarcasm but Robin didn't care. He collapsed onto the ground, ignoring the fact that a piece of a Sladebot was poking him in the back, and just panted out his exhaustion. 

"Get up, Robin; we're behind schedule for your training as it is." Slade growled as he marched forward, his boots crunching a few parts of miscellaneous Sladebots as he walked into the circle of destroyed and defeated robots. "You have so much more to do before you can rest for the day."

"Wha--?" Robin couldn't even gather the energy to complete a full question, yet alone stand up and fight again.

"The reason I wanted you to experience group fighting first was because I needed to see how much of an improvement in your technique was necessary before we moved on to anything else. Let me just say, that it's in a dire need of improvement so get up and I mean now. I want to focus on your kicks first then we'll move onto your punches, blocks, and we'll continue on from there until I deem that you're capable of at least not being an embarrassment to me when you fight." Slade narrowed his eye as he stared down at Robin. "I said get up!" He shouted and promptly kicked Robin in his side.

Robin groaned and rolled into a ball as he gripped his aching side. "Lazy boy," Slade scolded. "You should be thankful I purposely missed your floating ribs. My kick could have easily broken them. Now get up before I change my mind and decide I should break them." Robin moaned and slowly started to rise off of the floor. "Move faster, Robin, we don't have all day to wait on you. We're not going to stop until you complete everything I had planned for today and I don't care if we're still working on your form past midnight."

"What about food?" Robin asked as he continued to clutch at his side and finally stood on his unsteady legs.

"You had breakfast," Slade harshly stated and turned on his heel. "Now come along. Maybe if you're not a total disappointment in the next few hours, you can have dinner."

* * *

"Alright, we're done for the day." Slade announced and Robin instantly dropped his hands, reminding himself of how well controlled the Sladebots were since they did the same. "I must admit that once I pointed out your flaws, you did a wonderful job correcting them. You've redeemed yourself from earlier today, Robin." 

"Can I go to bed now?" Robin asked desperately.

"I thought you wanted food." Slade reminded. "And besides, it's unhealthy for you to skip two meals in one day. Come now, we'll get you some dinner. A growing boy has to eat, Robin."

"You're the one who made me miss lunch." Robin mumbled under his breath as he started to trail behind the man. Every step he took made him wonder if his legs were going to spontaneously combust; everything hurt. He knew he probably had a dozen new bruises, his calf muscles felt tight enough to tear into two, and his arms wanted to fall off of his body altogether.

"You'll be having your lunch for dinner since it was already made and I don't waste food." Slade commented as he opened the kitchen door and Robin trudged into the room and collapsed in his chair. "Your meals will be the same each day; eggs in the morning, with yogurt, and some sort of fruit, a whole wheat sandwich with ham and cheese for lunch with some sort of side, and for dinner you'll get chicken with a variety of side dishes. You had chicken last night and your eggs this morning, so we need to get your grains into you. So eat up."

Robin opened his eyes—even his eyelids hurt—and stared at the plate before him. A tall glass of milk, a whole wheat bagel with ham and Swiss cheese sticking out of the sides, an apple, and a bowl of tomato soup; Robin started to drool and whipped at his mouth as he suddenly realized how hungry he was.

He glanced over at Slade, seated across from him like always, and then picked up his sandwich and started to devour it. "Well, at least you worked up an appetite. Really though, Robin, table manners," Slade sounded disgusted and to Robin that made picking up the bowl of soup and slurping it all down even better. If Slade was disgusted then he wouldn't find Robin too attractive which meant Robin could actually go straight to bed after eating and not have to worry about anything happening in the bed.

"No one's going to take your food away, Robin; you can slow down and actually taste it. Or you can just guzzle it all down and get a stomach ache like you're doing." Slade rolled his eye. "Fine, don't listen to my advice but if when you become sick to your stomach don't come crying to me about it."

Robin finished the rest of his meal and smiled as he wiped his mouth on his sleeve, minding the metal guards. "Napkins, Robin," Slade scolded. "I didn't realize that when you were hungry you reverted to a little kid. I'll have to make sure you don't skip meals from now on." Slade stood up. "Alright, leave the dishes and let's get to bed. I have a different position I want to try tonight."

Freezing as he stood up, Robin looked at Slade with wide eyes. His plan of disgusting Slade obviously didn't work well enough. Slade noticed Robin's sudden lack of movement and chuckled. "Don't worry, Robin, it's not hand and knees. I understand how fucking like a dog can be very demoralizing and I'm really not in favor of it, as you might have noticed." Slade held the door open and Robin swallowed hard and reluctantly headed out of the room and towards the bedroom.

Slade walked beside him and wrapped an arm around his waist. His hand started to stroke Robin's hip, below his belt, and Robin shivered. "I hope you understand that I'm only being so hard on you with training because I want what's best for you and I know that you need to be pushed to be as successful as you can be." Slade excused himself from the harsh treatment earlier that day. "You'll thank me in the long run when you see how much better you've become."

Robin half listened to Slade's words and focused more on just putting one foot before the other. He was so tired, he just wanted to go to sleep; maybe Slade would let him if he said so. "Slade, I'm really tired and I know I'm going to be really sore in the morning, so can we just skip it tonight?" Robin pleaded as he looked up at the man and stuck out his lower lip, trying to play the pouting puppy look.

Slade laughed and pulled Robin tighter against him. "Don't worry, Robin, this position has pretty much guaranteed that you'll enjoy yourself tonight. You'll see," And he continued to stroke up and down Robin's hip bone once more.

So much for any of his plans working, Robin sighed and stepped into the bedroom when Slade opened the door for him. The door slammed, echoing in the room and sending another shiver up Robin's spine. It was so finalizing; the echo assuring Robin of what was going to happen and how he couldn't do a thing to stop it. Slade hadn't brought out the trigger the entire day and Robin didn't want him to bring it out during the night either.

"I'm really sweaty, I know I smell foul, maybe I should shower first?" If he could 'accidentally' fall asleep in the shower than maybe Slade would see how tired he was and give him a break.

"I don't mind. You're only going to continue to sweat and why bother with two showers?" Slade asked as he started to remove his gloves.

Robin sighed and started to remove his own clothes. Slade finished undressing first, since Robin was taking his sweet time and hesitating with his boxers. He walked over to the drawer and grabbed the tube of lubricant and squeezed some into his hand. Settling onto the bed, Slade began to stroke himself into arousal as he slicked his erection, moaning softly. Robin gulped as he watched Slade's large hand pump up and down, becoming faster with the slick lubricant helping.

"Robin," Slade panted and the boy flinched as if he had been hit. He raised his eyes up to Slade's mask, knowing he was caught looking. "Come here, Robin," Slade coaxed as he stopped stroking and simply gripped the base of his erection.

Slowly, Robin dropped his boxers and climbed onto the bed. "Wha…what should I do?" Robin asked as he felt heat rising to his face. He felt like such a stupid kid, asking questions and trying to avoid looking at Slade's glistening body.

"Turn around and sit on my lap." Slade stroked his thighs and spread them slightly. Robin nodded and turned around. Slade's hands settled on his slender hips and led him to lay flush against his chest. Slade adjusted himself and Robin gasped as he felt Slade's large member slide between his ass cheeks, sliding against the sensitive skin in between. Slade's thumbs began to stroke at his hip bones and, along with his collective breathing, he started to relax his body,

Slade lifted Robin, still stroking with the rough pads of his thumbs, and held him flush against him, back to chest. Robin took an extra deep breath and tried to prepare himself as he felt Slade line his hardness up with his entrance. He slowly released his breath and tried his hardest to hold back his scream as Slade impaled him on his cock.

Robin's eyes were shut but the tears were still leaking down his face. It seemed to hurt even more than it did the night before, perhaps because his entire body already hurt. He decided to try and focus on why this position hurt more since it would keep his mind off of everything. By using just the slightest distraction and detaching himself from the true situation to look at things in a scientific way, Robin could find a way to come to terms with what was happening.

It was probably because he was still sore from the other night, he reasoned to himself as Slade's hands cupped his ass and his thigh, lifting him up again and bringing his straight back down. Robin whimpered once more and leaned his head against Slade, searching for the bit of comfort he could get out of human warmth. Slade wasn't going as fast as he usually did so Robin couldn't even concentrate on the slight pleasure friction brought him. Slade adjusted himself inside Robin, making the boy hiss as he moved.

Or it might have been the fact of the position allowing Slade to use gravity's advantage and gain a deeper penetration, Robin continued to try and figure out as he kept his mind distracted. And as Robin was lifted and brought down again on Slade's pulsing cock, he knew that that was probably why it hurt so much. Gravity was helping Slade drive himself deeper into Robin.

Once more, Slade moved a bit to change the angle and lifted Robin up until only the head of his cock was still inside the boy. He slowly dropped Robin back onto his full length and brushed past Robin's prostate at the different angle, causing Robin to buck and throw his head back with his eyes wide open. That had actually felt good…

"There we go." Slade mumbled more to himself than to Robin as he leaned back against the headboard and started to stroke Robin's chest. He brushed across Robin's nipples for a bit until he stopped and started to play with them deliberately. Circling the soft skin, pressing a bit harder, flicking at the hardened nubs, and then twisting a bit until Robin gasped and leaned against him in order to try and move away from his hands and to gain that bit of comfort back that he could receive from human warmth.

As soon as Robin's back pressed against Slade's chest, the man wrapped an arm across Robin's chest and held him against himself as he slowly started to move his hips, continually brushing Robin's prostate. Robin closed his eyes, bit his lip, and tried to remember that he was being raped, that he didn't want it, and that it shouldn't feel good.

But to Robin's horror, he was instantly hard and Slade's thrust picked up speed. More tears welled up behind his mask and he brought his hands up to Slade's arm pinning his chest down. He wanted to pull away from the man, to get rid of some of the skin-on-skin contact now, to stop being so confused as to why his body was betraying him and liking the rape; he just wanted it all to stop.

Instead, Slade took his other hand off of Robin's hip and wrapped said large hand around Robin's erection. Robin's eyes shot open again and he gasped as his hips had involuntarily thrusted into Slade's hand. He simply stared at his erection in Slade's hold while he tried to figure out a way to get his body to stop betraying him. A bit of pre-cum slid out his aching cock and Slade chuckled as he began to slowly move his hand up and down Robin's shaft faster and easier with the lubricated help that Robin was providing.

Bucking, moaning, and turning his head from one side to the other, Robin kept thinking of how wrong it was. How he did. Not. Want. This. And yet his body was saying otherwise. Even biting through his lip he couldn't stop his moans, there was no way to control his hips when Slade's hips started to move in rhythm with his hand, and he was disgusted by the layer of sweat coating his body and his heavy, erratic breathing.

Slade however, was still hitting his prostate, still stroking his cock with a light, teasing touch, and pinning him against his chest so he felt the man's heavy breath on the back of his neck. Robin felt so hot, confused, and like his lower stomach was about to burst at any moment. It was so tight and he was really starting to hurt.

"Slade," he moaned and tossed his head again. "Slade, please," stop, he was sure he wanted to say. But he couldn't bring himself to actually say it because he knew that Slade wouldn't and he knew that he didn't really want Slade to stop. Not anymore. His body obviously wanted Slade to keep going.

"That's right, Robin, come for me, my precious boy." Slade's thrusts increased in speed and power and with a final pump, Robin came all over his stomach, screaming incoherently and for a second he was blissfully happy as he panted and plastered himself fully against Slade.

Then he felt Slade come inside himself and he groaned as he was quickly brought out of his bliss. Slade remained inside of him for a moment, breathing heavily, his breath coming out of the slits in his mask to ruffle Robin's sweaty hair. Slade lifted his arm off of Robin's chest and ran his fingers through the cooling cum on Robin's stomach. He scooped some onto his fingers as he drew an 'S' in it with possessive pride.

"Lick," he ordered as he brought his fingers up to Robin's mouth. The boy turned his head to the side in disgust. "Taste your pleasure, Robin," Slade ran his cum covered fingertips over Robin's lower lip and the boy's tongue darted out of his mouth and lapped at it's own account. It tasted salty like Slade's had and he honestly didn't mind the taste too much.

"I told you this position would work," Slade bragged as he waited for Robin to lick his fingers clean. He then slowly lifted Robin off of his limp member and placed the boy next to him. "It'll be like that from now on, Robin, you'll see." Slade traced Robin's face, making Robin shiver. Slade was barely touching him, his fingertips just ghosting over his super sensitive skin. "From now on, I'll make sure you always enjoy it."

Robin inhaled sharply and slipped off of the bed. "I'm going to take that shower now." He walked around the bed, picking up his boxers as he passed them, and stood in the bathroom's doorway. He glanced back at Slade, watched as the man crossed his ankles together, leaned further against the headboard, and stretched his hands over his head, looking altogether smug and too proud of himself.

Slamming the door, Robin threw his boxers to the floor and turned on the shower's spray. "So he made me come, big deal, it's not like I really enjoyed it. I'm a teenaged boy; I could get off watching Opera." He mumbled to himself as he stepped into the shower. "I didn't enjoy it, it's still rape." Yet he couldn't scrub away the feeling that his own body had betrayed him.

Robin finished up his shower in minutes, not taking any time to enjoy the hot water, even though it did feel good against his abused body. He dried himself off and pulled on his boxers, glancing in the mirror hanging over the sink. Robin looked down at himself and grimaced as he spotted the large bruise on his side. He immediately knew that it was from Slade's boot and already it was starting to turn purple.

"Ow," he hissed as he patted the spot dry and then ran the towel over his head. There weren't any bruises on his head, at least. Though, it could be argued whether or not he had bruises and scars on the inside of his head.

He threw the towel on the bathroom tile and glanced at the door. The bathroom was warm and filled with steam still. Outside, Slade was probably still on the bed with his arrogance attitude intact. Robin lifted the toilet seat down and sat on top of it.

Running his fingers through his damp hair, he sighed and thought of his friends. He missed them so much and he wondered if they were still looking for him. He had a feeling that Starfire had probably torn Jump City apart in her desperation to find him but he didn't blame her. He was her first friend she made on Earth. Running his fingers over his lips, he remembered the first time he met her and a feeling of a happy nostalgia soon overcame him as he became comfortable in the warm room.

It took him a moment to realize that he had drifted off and he groaned as he stood and stretched out his legs. Sore muscles and an uncomfortable sleeping position was not a good thing, he decided as he headed out of the bathroom. He was surprised—and happy—to find the bedroom empty. Apparently, Slade still wasn't going to actually sleep with him.

Robin shrugged his shoulders, he really didn't care if Slade slept or not. Besides, just because the man claimed to have feelings for him and raped him, it didn't mean that Slade had to continue to play the part of Robin's lover. Robin liked sleeping in the cold bed by himself in the unfamiliar room anyway. If Slade would sleep with Robin and insist on wrapping his arms around Robin to keep him safe and warm, Robin would hate that. Sliding into the bed, Robin brought the covers up to his chin and idly wondered which truly was better.

His relationship with Slade was confusing. Slade had been treating him like his lowlife apprentice all day, but after dinner he had started to act like he was Robin's boyfriend again, except not. When Slade and Robin had been dating, Slade had been comforting with his body, always touching Robin in a gentle and caring way. Now when Slade touched him it was always with an incentive for sex or it was during sex; there was no comfort behind it.

Sighing, Robin told his brain to shut down for the night. His body thanked him as it started to get the rest it rightfully deserved. Though, things never worked out like Robin planned and his thoughts kept him up for another hour until he finally fell asleep, wishing that Slade really did love him and not just love his body and skill.

* * *

**A.N. **Alright guys, I have some bad news; Crew is starting again. I know, I know, why haven't I quit yet and dedicated all of my time to writing slash? Well, my mom wants me to go to a great college and with Crew I can get a very nice scholarship so I can't quit yet. But because Crew is starting up it means that this Saturday I have my first inside race--which means it's on an ERG which is the death machine of death--and then this Sunday is my sister's 21st Birthday so I'm travelling up to her college. So, this chapter will have to hold you guys for two weeks since I'm gone all next weekend. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin in the beginning with RobinRed X in future chapters  
**Chapter Summary:** Robin's next day doesn't seem to be any better as an apprentice and is he starting to loose his mind?

**Author's Note**: Wow, the last time I updated this was in January...It's July. Yeah...that won't ever happen again. In fact, I'll be working on this fic like mad from now on. I'm going to tackle it as part of my 'healing process.' So, yeah, I'm planning on having this at least more than halfway done before NaNo comes up this year! Right, enough talking. Fic. Enjoy!

* * *

**Obscuring the World**

When he thought really hard about it, his life had been practically destined to be nothing more than watching others live a normal, happy life but never participating in it for himself. Ever since he was little, after what happened with his parents, he should have known that he was meant to be lonely forever at the very least. It was almost like it was his destiny.

Luckily for him, Slade wasn't raised to believe in destiny. He believed that man ruled their own lives and he wasn't going to let anything stop him from living how he wanted to live. Throughout his life, he made sure that if he wanted something, he'd get it, no matter what it took. Everything was within his reach; he just had to work hard enough for it.

When he wanted to join the army but was held back by his age, he simply lied and pulled a few favors to get in. When he was determined to become an assassin he didn't let anything stop him, not even the fact that he was tied down by his wife and kids because they were willing to settle for a normal life. When he made the decision that Robin, the Boy Wonder, would be his boy, he didn't allow anything to stop him. Not even the boy.

He was puzzling at bit, his boy, but Slade had Robin all figured out now. After years of watching, waiting, and planning, he knew Robin better than anyone, even better than Robin knew himself.

The boy stood in Batman's shadow for years and then tried to go out on his own, only to be dragged down by a group of other teens trying to make names for themselves. But Robin had allowed the team to be made because it gave him the position of leader.

Everything with Robin had to do with power; having it, trying to earn it, wanting it. Robin had a control kink. And, lucky for him, Slade knew how to work with that.

When they had started dating, Slade had done the normal, vanilla routine; movies, talking, trying each other's interests. It had gotten boring fast.

Robin saying it was over showed Slade that Robin had thought it was boring too. That was why he had brought the boy's kink out into the open. Power play; he showed Robin that he had power and that he could take the boy's power away.

He indulged the boy a bit in his fantasies of being the weak, captured prisoner, but he knew that it was the right thing to let the boy think that he was being held against his whim. Robin secretly craved that, and he wasn't too good at hiding it anymore. Slade had broken Robin's little fantasy the night before when he finally got the boy to loose enough control and orgasm. But it was fine that Robin still wanted to play.

Truthfully, Slade had a power play kink as well. Just as long as he was the one with all of the power when they played.

* * *

Something kept touching his face and it was really starting to bother him. Robin scowled as he just started to wake up. He moved his hand to try and bat whatever was bugging him away. Instead, his hand was caught and the soft sensation that had been on his face was now focused on the palm of his hand. He blinked his eyes open a few times and stared at his hand in confusion. It took him a few minutes to realize another hand was rubbing circles on his palm.

Jerking awake, Robin pulled his hand back from the other hand as if it was being burned and slowly looked up to see that the hand was attached to a person. In fact, it was none other than Slade that the mysterious hand was connected to—surprise, surprise considering that the other man was the only other person who knew where he was.

"Morning, Robin," Slade greeted as he scooted closer and ran a hand through Robin's bed ruffled hair. Robin cursed the ways of teenagers to not normally be morning types—reminding himself that Starfire was an alien and was an everything type of person as the thought of her usual, cheery morning greetings suddenly entered his mind—and tried to speed up his thoughts so he could understand what was going on.

He remembered the unfair deal he had made with Slade and he remembered the training and other activities but he never remembered Slade slipping into the bed with him. He was sure that the man had left the room once he had returned from the shower and he was a light sleeper, he would have heard the man coming back into the room. Heck, he usually caught Batman sneaking through the house; how could Slade possibly be sneakier than Batman?

Yet the man somehow had to be since that was the only reasonable explanation for Robin to wake up next to Slade while the man was under the covers next to him. Robin gulped and finally decided that his brain was wide awake since he was currently trying to not wonder if Slade was naked under the sheet as he stared at the man's bare chest.

"Morning," Robin finally managed to reply. "Should I get dressed and meet you in the kitchen before we start training today?"

Slade finally retracted his hand from Robin's hair, somehow managing to mess Robin's hair up even more, and stood up as he stretched his back out. Robin was thankful that the man had been sleeping in his spandex pants, though he thought it strange—since when was anything Slade did normal—especially since spandex was not a comfortable fabric to sleep in. It clung too much in all the wrong places to ever be comfortable sleep ware.

"Dress in the suit but there's no need for the armor today. We're going to spend less time training today than yesterday." Slade replied as he went to his closet and already slipped on his shirt. He cracked his knuckles before he slipped his gloves on and then turned around to look at Robin still in the bed.

"Don't just lie there, Robin. It might be an easier day but that doesn't mean you can spend all of it in bed." He paused for a moment and rubbed his masked chin. "Though, we might do that someday if you prove you deserve it." Slade chuckled and then headed to the door and called behind him as he headed into the hallway, leaving the door open, "I'll see you in the kitchen in five minutes." Robin knew that it was an order.

Robin's jaw seemed to unhinge because, try as he might, he just couldn't close his mouth. Slade had just laughed, in the morning, and made a sexual reference, in the morning, which meant he was in an extremely good mood, in the morning. Robin didn't even bother to set his brain on such a hard puzzle in the morning since it was morning.

Slade and happy and in the morning made Robin tremendously confused. The man did not strike him as a morning person nor an any-time-of-day person.

Warily, Robin entered the kitchen a few minutes later, his hair gelled and dressed in his suit minus the armor pieces. "So, why are we having a shorter training period today?" Robin asked carefully as he sat across from Slade and peeled the banana next to his plate of eggs.

"You can't do two extremely hard workouts two days in a row, Robin; your body needs time to heal or else you could easily get injured. When your muscles break down after a hard workout, they need a proper amount to heal so they can grow larger quicker." Slade explained even though Robin was quite aware of the basic lessons of proper training and just generally working out.

"Besides, I did take you as an apprentice not just because of your body but also because of your clever mind, which is also why you're such an appealing lover," Slade purred as he commented nonplused. "I decided I'll challenge your mind today and let your body rest a bit. You'll go through some obstacle courses that I have set up, look at a few blueprints to decide how you would escape if you were ever caught in imaginary situations, and we'll review a few tapes I have from your past fights so I can explain what you should have done in a few key moments."

"That…sounds pretty nice actually." Robin admitted as he looked at Slade skeptically as he finished off his banana.

"I'm glad you think so," Robin couldn't tell if Slade was being sarcastic or not but he wasn't going to question. It sounded like he was going to be having a good day and he was not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

* * *

The training had been easy, even somewhat enjoyable, and Robin's mind had been racing the entire time. He was trying to figure out why Slade's personality had seemed to do a total flip and how the man had gotten into such a good mood. Robin hypothesized that it had to do with their nightly activities. Slade had seemed so smug with himself the night before due to Robin's body reacting to his touch. Was that the key to Slade's personality?

Robin idly wondered if he'd have to enjoy the sex every night in order to get an easier training practice. It didn't sound that bad to him so it would be a sacrifice he would make; after all, he was a teenage boy and he doubted his betraying body would have a problem with testing out his thought. Especially, since he was already hard from all the close encounter techniques they had been working on. Curse his stupid body; he should not be turned on from rubbing against Slade's hard, warm body.

Blushing bright red, Robin quickly released Slade's arm and backed away. Slade chuckled and turned around. "You've gotten that technique down rather quickly, Robin. I think we're done for the day and can move on to my other plans." He leered and Robin knew that his erection was extremely noticeable—damn spandex.

"I did a bit of online shopping last night." Slade commented as he started to lead Robin back through the winding halls. Robin followed five steps behind Slade and felt even more uncomfortable with each step, even as his mind focused on every un-attracting thing he had ever seen. "I've always been a fan of adding toys in the bedroom but my collection was rather female oriented."

Opening the bedroom door, Slade ushered Robin inside and the boy's eyes darted around the room, searching for whatever kind of toy Slade had in mind so he could be prepared. "My delivery won't arrive for another few days, but I have some items that are friendly to all genders."

"Like what?" Robin asked, trying to make the question seem like he was merely curious and not scared for his life. Slade's type of toys seemed like whips and large paddles; there was no way in hell he would let himself get in such a position.

"Nothing much," Slade replied as he pulled a box out of his closet and settled it on the floor. Robin tentatively started to walk over but Slade stood up with a set of handcuffs and a black, velvet strip of fabric in his hands. "Just these," Robin could practically see the wide, toothy grin behind the mask.

He gulped and hoped that he would be able to play the part and keep Slade in his good mood. His body was no longer in for the ride though and he silently began to wish that he would get embarrassingly hard again so he could have an easier time playing along. Slade slowly began to walk toward him and Robin knew that he wasn't about to have any prayer granted as the menacing man loomed over him.

* * *

"Relax, Robin, you know that I won't hurt you." Slade soothed as he ran his hand over Robin's flat stomach, his warm hands causing shivers to race up Robin's spine as the muscles in his stomach contrasted and flexed. Robin once again pulled his hands uselessly in the restraints holding them above his head.

Slade's words were a contradiction to their entire relationship; it was based on being hurt; fighting each other, out smarting each other, angering each other. "I'm…I'm really not comfortable with this, Slade." Which was the understatement of the world. "Could we do something else instead where I'm not blindfolded? Or could I at least have the use of my hands back?" He was glad his voice wasn't shaking at least. "Please?" He quickly tagged on the 'magic word' since Alfred had always taught him that manners can only help, never hurt. It was worth a shot since he didn't have anything to loose.

"You'll enjoy this. Think of it as a part of your training for today. Your arms will learn to be able to adjust to being bent at an angle for a period of time in case you're ever stuck in one position and with the blindfold on you'll be able to learn to focus on your other senses as they enhance. Besides," Slade bent over and licked a long stripe up Robin's thigh, causing the boy to shriek a bit in surprise and jump under Slade's hand. "This is the only way that I can finally recuperate for your blow jobs. You wouldn't really want to deny me this experience, do you? We are still both new in this field of exploring one another and honestly, I've heard that little boys taste so sweet." His voice dropped down to a sexually enticing purr. "I want to see if those rumors are true."

Robin's arms began to shake, not in exhaustion, but with his held back…something. Robin was actually hoping that it was fear, for once, and not desire. Because what Slade had just said, it was creepy, not sexy. He didn't like to be talked dirty to, he didn't like to be lectured while in such a helpless position, and he did not like knowing that Slade was mask less; he wasn't sure if he should be afraid or excited about that.

Not to mention that he was conflicted over Slade offering a blow job. If he refused that, what did it say about him? He was a teenaged boy who was being offered a blow job from one of the hottest, most feared villains ever. How many villains ever offered to blow Batman? He really didn't want to think about that actually.

Luckily, Slade's mouth descended on him and his thoughts quickly flew away from that topic and turned to mush with an occasional 'wow, that's good,' managing to be formed.

Robin couldn't hold back his moans as the wet fire enveloped him whole. He could only squirm and moan some more as Slade worked him, his tongue pushing his slit back and causing him to jerk against the handcuffs. The cold metal bit into his skin, a painful contrast to the warm pleasure his groin was experiencing but it was enough to get him thinking straight for a few seconds.

"Slade," he groaned as he tried to bring his knees up. "You need to stop," he panted and twisted, arching his back against the mattress. "I…you, oh god," His eyes began to water as Slade gently scraped his teeth against the underside then wrapped his lips around the head and sucked.

He was going to come, he was on the edge and he knew that it wouldn't take too much more. But then Slade pulled away and Robin moaned at the sudden loss of pleasure. He hated that he was whining for Slade like he actually enjoyed it but who was he kidding? He obviously did want it since the proof was erect and shining with spit.

Robin gasped as a single, lubed finger was suddenly thrust into him. He was still sore from the night before and the night previous to that one. Slade either didn't notice or didn't care, probably the latter one.

Slade's finger crooked inside and Robin groaned as it hit his tender walls. Humming quietly to himself, Slade began moving his finger around until Robin gasped and arched. He had found the boy's sweet spot. Chuckling lightly, Slade lubed himself up and pressed against Robin. "Remember not to tense," he warned before he pushed in to the hilt.

The next few moments all Robin could do was gasp, pant, moan, and arch as Slade moved in and out of him. A steady pace, hot hands suddenly seeming cooler as they traveled over his body, touching ribs, nipples, a hot mouth on his neck, sucking, biting and marking and Robin came with a loud cry of pleasure as his mind broke.

He didn't feel Slade come. He didn't feel Slade's mouth sample his pleasure splattered on his stomach nor Slade's tongue circle his belly button. He didn't feel Slade unlock his hands or untie his blindfold. He didn't see Slade's mask back in place. He didn't even walk to the bathroom and start the shower.

But he finally breathed as warm water pelted his skin and he felt its cleansing power. His mind was slowly mended back into a whole piece and it decided that it had enough. "I'm not going to stand for this anymore," he whispered to himself as he glared at the shower tiles. He watched as the filth ran off of his body and swirled around the drain before finally disappearing from sight.

When a towel was safely wrapped around him, he wiped the steam off of the mirror and looked at his reflection. "I am Robin, the Boy Wonder," he growled at himself, "And it's about time I start fighting back."

He shoved the door open with overly dramatic flair only to find that Slade was no longer in the room. Frowning, Robin decided that he could start fighting back the next morning then. He quickly changed into the pajamas that Slade had for him, boxers and a large t-shirt that he once thought was Slade's but was too small to fit the man.

Robin settled on what he considered his side of the bed, the side that they didn't have sex on, and pulled the covers up to his neck. He closed his eyes and tried to sleep but his mind was racing.

Was he really going to try and fight back against Slade? Could he with Slade holding his friends' lives with a push of a button? Even without the probes, would he be able to fight against Slade? The man had overpowered him before, why wouldn't Slade do it again?

He figured that he did drift to sleep eventually when he opened his eyes and found himself facing Slade. He jerked away until he noticed that Slade's eye was closed. Was the man sleeping? Slade slept?

Robin suddenly held his breath as he realized that he had the perfect moment to attack Slade. His defense was down and even though Batman didn't believe in attacking opponents when their back was turned, Batman also didn't tolerate rape. So Robin figured he would be forgiven.

As soon as Robin shifted closer to Slade, the man's eye flew open. If Robin was out of shape or older, he probably would have died from a heart attack.

"Mmm," Slade moaned as he lifted a hand and brushed it through Robin's hair with unsettling gentleness. "Go back to sleep, my little bird." Slade murmured as his hand went down to Robin's back and slowly began to trace soft circles.

Robin closed his eyes as the soothing touches began to take their affect. He subconsciously moved closer to Slade until he was pressed against the man's warm skin. Slade's breath hitched in his throat but he didn't pull away and Robin quickly fell asleep, for once, feeling happy. And that frightened him.


	7. Chapter 7

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin in the beginning with RobinRed X in future chapters  
**Chapter Summary:** Robin is on the breaking point. He has had enough.

**Author's Note**: Okay, so this chapter is going to be the last megga-angsty one 'cause it's seriously just Robin crying, then getting raped, then crying some more, and so on. Also, this was rushed becaue I wanted to post it before I left for Peru. Still, I hope you enjoy it, if you don't; I don't blame you but stick around for the next chapter because I have quite a few things planned!

* * *

**Bipolar**

It was different waking up that morning. He wasn't shaken awake and he didn't feel scared or pissed off at Slade, which really was odd. But it wasn't as odd as waking up in Slade's arms and feeling warm. He felt warm all over but the worst part was that his heart felt warm too.

Robin was pretty sure his heart was still smashed into a million different pieces from when Slade had thrown it against the wall when he had deceived him. Only, it was working because it was beating so rapidly, Robin was pretty sure he could actually feel it thump against his chest. It was starting to worry him.

Especially since he had just finally become determined enough to defeat Slade once and for all. Why did his zombie heart have to come back and fight against him? And why did that thought remind him of Beast Boy so much?

Robin frowned and shifted slightly. Slade's arm was underneath his back and it was no longer comfortable.

"Good morning, little bird." Slade greeted, surprising Robin enough to jump in his arms. Robin mentally cursed Slade's mask; how could he tell if the man was awake or not when he wore that thing all the time? "I think we've slept in enough." Slade slipped his hand out from under Robin. "I'll go prepare your breakfast."

Robin watched as Slade strode out of the room and wondered once more how the man enjoyed wearing long spandex while sleeping. He shook his head and grabbed his own spandex only to stop with his pants half up. Was he supposed to wear the armor today as well? Slade had forgotten to tell him, which really surprised him; Slade forgot to do something. Slade, the controlling perfectionist, left Robin with a decision about something that he had to decide for himself.

He opted not to wear the armor because really, the metal was kind of heavy and the edges poked into his skin when he moved sometimes. Besides, they were easier to put than take off. Robin hurriedly got dressed and ran out to the kitchen to meet Slade for breakfast, his heart still pounding away in his chest.

* * *

Slade sat at the small table, watching Robin like he did every morning, and Robin forced himself not to squirm under that gaze. It was hard not to feel self-conscious with someone observing your every mood. But he focused on finishing his normal breakfast even though his hands were shaking more than they usually seemed to and his higher heart rate probably wasn't helping. He just couldn't calm himself down though.

Cursing mentally, Robin's whole body jerked when he felt Slade's leg accidentally brush against his own under the table and he spilt the spoonful of yogurt onto his chin instead of getting it in his mouth.

Slade bent slightly and wiped the yogurt off of Robin's face with two fingers before Robin had the time to grab a napkin and he stared at the man as Slade studied the yogurt. Slade then presented his fingers to Robin by leaving them in front of the boy's face. "Lick," he ordered quietly.

That got Robin's heart rate to drop. In fact, for a moment it felt like his heart had stopped beating. Robin bit the inside of his mouth to stop himself from saying anything he would regret but he really hoped that Slade wasn't seriously thinking of doing anything so early in the morning. Robin was no longer up to it.

Slowly, Robin's tongue slipped past his pink lips and lapped at Slade's fingers, licking away all of the yogurt until Slade moaned. Robin froze with his tongue out and his mouth partly open. Slade took it as an invitation and shoved fingers fully into Robin's mouth. "Suck," It seemed like Slade favored the monosyllabic orders.

Robin closed his eyes and did as he was told. He could no longer taste any yogurt; only the taste of Slade's glove and it didn't taste good at all. Luckily Slade got bored of that pretty quickly and pulled Robin out of his seat.

"Slade!" Robin's eyes widened as Slade unlocked his belt and pulled his pants down. "Wha—"

"Brace yourself on the table," Slade ordered as he undid his own belt. Robin gulped but did as he was told. It seemed like Slade was in a really good mood and Robin knew that led to sex but he wasn't imagining sex so early in the day. Apparently Slade liked nooners and even early rendezvous.

Robin hissed and jumped to the balls of his feet as he felt Slade's gloved clad fingers ease into him. His fingers clenched the wooden table and he swore he was going to leave dents before this was over with.

Slade wasn't in the mood to be patient though because his fingers were in and out then being replaced by his burning cock. Robin moaned and his back arched as he threw his head back. He was so sore and this was not what he woke up for.

"Slade," Robin groaned as he bowed his head. Slade's hands grabbed Robin's hips and he started to pull and push the boy's body with his thrusts.

"Please, Slade, not so rough." Robin panted as Slade continued to plow in and out of him. He was rocking back and forth, on his heels then on his toes, and his knuckles were white due to the death grip he had on the end of the table. "I'm not going to be able to walk after this."

Slade laughed breathlessly as he stopped inside Robin to catch his breath for a moment, causing Robin's eyes to widen as he groaned in displeasure at the sudden pulsing and the absence of the friction. "Don't worry, Robin, I'll take care of you."

He started again and Robin bit the inside of his mouth to stop himself from screaming the place down. Slade was not taking care of him; he was going the same speed and pressure as before. If anything, the man had picked up the pace and had started to slam into him even harder than before, if that was possible.

Robin knew that Slade was going to be the death of him eventually, especially at this rate. Robin bowed his head as he felt his arms shake and bend at his elbows. Slade's next thrust sent his whole body forward and he slammed his head against the edge of the table. Then, it was black.

* * *

"Oh, my head," Robin moaned as he opened his eyes. His hand went to his head and he tentatively touched it. He hissed in pain and moved his hand away to lay it back on the bed. "What happened?"

"You hit your head off of the table," Slade stepped into Robin's point of view and the boy groaned. He really didn't feel like dealing with that man at the moment since his head was pounding and trying to crack itself open.

"You have a bump on your head but you're fine otherwise. You might want to take a shower though." Slade suggested as though he fucked a boy into unconsciousness on a daily routine and it was nothing special. If Robin hadn't known better, than he would have guessed that Slade usually did use a boy to such an extent.

Still, if Robin could have a moment away from Slade, which he only got when he was showering, then he would take it. He would live in the shower if he could; why didn't he have gills?

He groaned as he stood from the bed, his head throbbing and yelling at him for moving too fast, too soon. Slowly, Robin made his way to the bathroom and flipped on the shower, turning it to the hottest it could go without being too uncomfortable for him. The steam that hot showers produced always helped him when he had a headache.

His pants fell to the floor and Robin stepped out of them but he froze before he stepped into the shower. He felt a familiar texture running between his legs.

Hesitantly, Robin reached between himself and stroked a finger on the underside of his thighs, through the texture. His finger was covered in a sticky white liquid; cum, more specifically, Slade's. Slade had finished up inside him. He had known that Robin went unconscious and yet he had still finished up. He hadn't stopped his pleasure simply because Robin was no longer able to do anything—he never could before but then he really couldn't—or even know what was happening.

Robin felt fresh tears running down his face and he quickly stepped under the hot spray of water. The best time to cry was in the shower, he figured as he allowed the tears to run freely down his face. He pushed the palm of his hand hard against his mouth and his body continued to shake as he fought to keep quiet yet get all the aching misery out at the same time.

His salty tears mixed in with the cleansing water as Robin closed the sliding glass divider and pressed his head against the tile. Slade really didn't care about him. Slade really did only see him as a fucktoy; it was obvious now.

And he was completely over it. If that's the way Slade saw him then he was through trying to see the better side of Slade. He was a monster.

* * *

"Feeling better?" Slade asked as Robin stepped out of the bathroom, steam following behind him. Robin gripped his towel tighter around his waist.

"Does it really matter?" Robin questioned moodily as he strode over to his part of the closet and dressed, ignoring Slade's leering gaze. He knew Slade didn't really hear his question. Why would Slade listen to what his little fucktoy had to say while it was naked?

He clicked the last piece of armor into place and headed to the door, not waiting for Slade to say anything. "Let's start training already." He walked out of the room and didn't even care to see if Slade was following him. He was.

"I don't think so, Robin. You've had a…rough morning." Slade chuckled and Robin felt his blood run cold. The man had just made a joke out of his plea. And the bastard thought it was funny. "I think it would be for the best if we skipped your training for today and just double it tomorrow. We're going to watch a movie instead so you can relax and get better. It will be just like how we used to date."

"Fine," Robin narrowed his eyes as he changed directions and headed to the room they use to frequently use to watch movies in.

Robin sat down on the couch and slid so that he was pressed up against the couch's arm. He leaned against it, pouting slightly, as Slade got the DVD player set up.

Slade joined Robin on the couch and squeezed his hand between the back of the couch and Robin's back to wrap immediately around Robin's waist. He stroked up and down Robin's side but the boy ignored the gesture and looked at the wall as ads and previews began playing on the screen. He had no interest in the movie or cuddling up to Slade like he used to; they weren't that couple anymore, Slade had demonstrated that fact more than enough.

Slade slid Robin closer to himself until Robin was snug up against him. But Robin refused to touch him anymore than that. He placed his hands in his lap and continued to glare at the wall, ignoring the screen and Slade's gaze. "You're being cold today, little bird." Slade acknowledged as he used Robin's pet name and for once didn't claim him as 'his little bird.'

"No I'm not," Robin denied but to no avail as Slade lifted him suddenly and placed him onto his lap. Robin shifted awkwardly and tried not to feel through the revealing spandex or shift too much. He didn't want to simulate anything.

Slade tried to push Robin back so that he was resting fully against him, but Robin remained stubborn and touched as little of Slade as the man could force him to as he used the strength of his abs to remain sitting up straight. "Robin," Slade growled his displeasure.

"You're armors cold," Robin mocked through his clenched teeth. Slade's hands left him for a moment but it was only to remove his neck plate and set it on the floor with a clank. He then pushed harder against Robin and Robin couldn't resist the strength as he was pressed back to chest against Slade.

Robin shifted a bit more as he tried to find a more comfortable position. Slade's top leg armor was digging into the back of his thighs. "So, what movie are we watching?" Robin asked as he tried to turn his focus on something else. It was hard to distract himself when Slade's hands were clamped possessively on his hips.

"Our favorite; Brokeback Mountain," Slade replied as he started to stroke Robin's hip bones with his thumbs. Robin gulped as the movie began and confirmed what Slade had said. He knew what would happen. Slade would become horny like he always did while watching this movie and he would use Robin to take care of it since the boy was so conveniently placed on his lap already.

Robin forced himself to sit still for the first half of the movie as he ignored the screen and focused only on his breathing. He knew that the less he moved the less he would excite Slade. But he knew that no matter what he tried to do, it was inevitable. Slade was like clockwork with this movie; as soon as one specific scene started, he would become horny.

Robin shifted slightly and stopped immediately as he felt Slade's erection pressing against him. He shivered and looked up at the screen. Sure enough, it was the same scene that always did it to Slade. The one in the tent and oh no, Slade's hands were moving to his belt. Robin swallowed his fear and acted fast.

He pushed off of Slade and stood up. Slade stared up at him and when his eye started to glare, Robin dropped to his knees in front of him. He knew his choices; fight Slade and end up hurting his friends, get fucked by the man for the second time that day, or save himself a bit of pain and simply suck him off instead.

Really, between the choice of a blowjob or a forced fuck, Robin could deal better with the blowjob. He at least had some power with that; he could decide how much of Slade he took in and how fast he moved.

"Robin," Slade's voice held the type of tone that meant he wanted things to go the way he planned and wasn't enjoying Robin's sudden boldness. But Robin was determined to suck Slade off instead and damn the man if he thought his boy-toy was always going to be obedient.

Robin leaned in and mouthed Slade's erection through his pants. He felt Slade pulse so he used his tongue and licked up and down the bulge.

He reached up and unzipped Slade as the man parted his legs. When Robin freed Slade's erection from his pants the man slid his hand into Robin's locks and the boy looked up at his masked face. The glare was gone and Slade's fingers were starting to massage his head in encouragement.

Taking a deep breath, Robin opened his mouth and gripped Slade's cock as Slade pushed his head down and fed him the pulsing organ.

Robin sucked on the uncut head and used his tongue to push at the slit. Slade moaned and shifted slightly, causing Robin's teeth to graze his sensitive flesh how he licked it. Slade liked playing it rough, after all.

He pulled off slightly and ran his tongue on the underside then circled the head with it. His head lowered and his tongue remained out as he licked and sucked at the same time. It caused his to drool more than usual, but he knew Slade didn't give a damn about that.

Robin's tongue froze though as he felt Slade's hand tighten in his hand. He knew Slade couldn't be done yet; he never finished up that quickly. Robin tried to move his head but Slade's grip was too tight, too rough. He was pulling at his roots and it was starting to hurt. Robin whined around Slade's cock and looked up at Slade, hoping that his expression could speak to Slade and get him to let go.

It obviously didn't work since Slade thrusted his hips and Robin's eyes widened as Slade's cock hit the back of his throat and choked him. Robin gagged and again tried to move but Slade held his head still and continued to thrust his hips. Robin felt tears stinging at his eyes as his plan backfired and he started to panic, fearing that he would choke. Slade was still using him, still had him fully under his control, and could now fuck his throat as he wished.

Breathing through his nose, Robin tried to focus solely on remaining calm and opening his throat. It made the experience easier on him and almost made it seem faster too since it wasn't much longer until Slade pulled his hair and came with a grunt down his throat.

Slade's hand released his head and Robin pulled off, breathing hard. "That was good, Robin." Slade praised, obviously not expecting the blowjob but happy due to the unexpected gift. "Now, come sit again." He patted his lap and Robin wiped his mouth one last time as he moved and resumed his seat.

At least with Slade satisfied Robin could enjoy the movie. Unfortunately, Slade's hands continued to stroke Robin's thighs and Robin tried to hold back his frustrated groan, since he knew Slade would mistake it as a moan. He couldn't hold it back and as soon as it was out, Slade's hands moved to his belt.

Robin knew that Slade wanted to recuperate the blowjob—though he didn't know why the man bothered—but Robin really didn't want anything like that. "No, Slade, I'm fine, really." He insisted as he placed his hands over Slade's, stopping the man from unbuckling his belt. "I really don't want it right now." He insisted and moved Slade's hands away from his belt.

But Slade's hands persisted. They slowly and not subtlety in the least of the word, made their way back to Robin's belt. He moved to unclick it and finally Robin lost it.

"I said I don't want it!" Robin shouted. His voice was filled with all of his hatred and anger towards Slade so the man actually stopped and moved his hand away from his belt.

Robin felt Slade tense under him and he suddenly worried that the man would use the trigger due to his little outburst. It could be seen as him disobeying Slade, after all. "I just want to watch the movie." Robin mumbled bitterly as he folded his hands over his chest and glared at the screen.

"Alright, Robin," Slade's voice sounded more distant than it usually did. The man was probably deep inside his own mind, trying to figure out why Robin had suddenly screamed like that. Robin knew that Slade was still turning his blind side to everything that he did to him so the man would probably never realize why Robin was so angry.

After an eternity, the movie finally ended and Robin stood as Slade went to turn off the movie. "What's next?" Robin asked, trying to prepare himself for the rest of the day. He continued to stand in front of the couch, his arms still defensively crossed over his chest as he waited. It was close to lunch time and Robin knew that Slade would hold true to his word and not train for the rest of the day. That only left certain activities to amuse them for the remaining time until night fell.

"What would you like to do?" Slade asked as he placed the DVD back into its case and the case into its proper place on the shelf.

"It doesn't matter." Robin muttered as he glared at the carpet by his feet. He knew that Slade wasn't really asking, wasn't really giving him a choice; he had learned by now that when Slade was involved, he never had a choice.

"Robin, it does matter. I want to know what you would want." Slade insisted as he turned and looked at the boy.

"What I want?" Robin hissed out as he clenched his hands by his sides. He was starting to shake with all of his pent up anger. If he didn't let some steam out soon, he was going to explode.

"I want to go home; I want to be back with my friends. I want to just be away from you for a few hours so I can collect whatever pieces are left of my sanity that I still have and try to reinforce them with some steel so I can survive this hell of an experience with you." He wanted to scream, to have shouted at the man, but even all of his anger toward Slade couldn't bring him enough energy to actually yell. Despite everything, he was just a tired boy and so his anger had sounded more like a desperate, whiny plea.

Robin looked up to find Slade studying him and he turned away as he felt tears start to threaten in his eyes again. He knew, even with the mask on, that his pain was written in bright neon on his face at that moment. And it was probably written in bright green, red, and yellow because his pain would mock him in such a way.

Slade nodded his head as he stared at Robin's back. Now it made sense to him; Robin had been spending too much time with him and was starting to feel smothered by all the attention. "Alright then, you can go rest in the room for a few hours. Take a nap if you wish,"

"Thanks," Robin bit out as he stormed off into the room. He was so close to breaking down; he could feel it on the edge of his mind.

* * *

He hadn't meant to fall asleep but he was apparently too tired to try and think of a way of attacking Slade and retrieving the trigger from him. He hated it when his body couldn't keep up with his brain. But then again, he also hadn't meant to release some of his frustrations on Slade since he knew the man would take it the wrong way.

Of course, Slade did take it the wrong way which was why Robin awoke to soft hands stroking his thighs. Robin grumbled something as his eyes opened but he just rolled onto his side to try and avoid the strange, tickling feeling. He really was tired.

Still, the soft hands just continued to stroke up his legs and sides until Robin finally groaned awake. He was so sick of waking up to Slade. "What?" He barked as he rubbed at his mask.

Slade was taken back at Robin's harsh tone but chalked it up to being woken. He wasn't nice either when he was woken up from a nap. "Robin," Slade purred as he removed his gloves. Robin's eyes narrowed as he noticed Slade's armor was already off. His was as well since armor wasn't comfortable to rest in. "I think I understand why you're so upset. We have been rushing a few things," which was the understatement of the world right then, "So I decided we need to slow down," he emphasized, "A bit."

"What does that mean exactly?" Robin asked, skeptical of Slade's words and actions since the man was now pulling his shirt off.

"We had a bit of a one sided spat earlier today." Slade reminded him, as though Robin had forgotten. "And I know that make-up sex is supposed to be fast and emotional, but I feel like you need it soft and slow right now. I'm willing to forgo the typical make-up sex for what you need."

"You're willing?" Robin questioned as his eyes narrowed. Was Slade seriously trying to pass himself off as some selfless boyfriend? "Oh that's so kind of you," Robin hissed through his teeth.

Slade didn't respond, he simply reached out and started to lift Robin's shirt. Robin grabbed Slade's wrist and applied pressure, even though he was pretty positive it had no effect on the man. "Stop it," Robin warned.

"Robin," Slade's voice grew dark as he continued to lift his shirt despite Robin's death grip, "Don't try to fight me, I know what you need."

"No," Robin spat, "You don't."

"If you're going to act difficult," Slade stopped and pulled out the trigger from underneath his shirt. "I can make this a lot simpler. Now, undress yourself and lay on your side like a good boy."

Robin glared, a corner of his mouth twisting into a snarl, even as he pulled off his pants and laid on his side like Slade told him to. Robin hissed with surprise as he suddenly felt Slade's lubed hand on his limp boyhood.

He twisted his hands into the sheets as Slade slowly began to pump him, adding just enough pressure at the top to easily excite him. Robin bit his lip and refused to give Slade the pleasure of hearing him moan as the man's large hand squeezed slightly. The warm skin to skin contact felt so good.

Robin tilted his head back as he breathed heavily through his nose, still biting at his lip each time he felt like moaning. He did, however, groan loudly as Slade pulled his hand away. Robin felt the hand part his soft cheeks and he begged, "Slade, not now, please," even as Slade slid a finger into him.

"Quiet, Robin, you need this. I'll be very gentle with you and you'll enjoy it." The man promised as he laid down behind him, spooning him. Slade adjusted them to a more comfortable position, propping Robin's head on a pillow, and pushed himself into Robin's giving body. Slade held Robin's top leg up and then moved it back to rest on top of his own legs. Slade rested on his arm, bent at an angle above his head and slowly began to move his hips back and forth while he rubbed Robin's smooth leg.

"See, Robin? Nice and gentle, it's exactly what you needed to feel better." Slade claimed as he continued the soft fuck.

Robin buried his face against the pillow under his head and his pants grew louder as Slade continued to thrust in and out, his pace deliberate. Robin groaned as the hand on his leg traced small patterns and finally slid down the soft thigh to his neglected, weeping erection. Slade's leisurely pace matched the slow slide of his hand up and down on Robin's shaft.

"Oh god," Robin moaned as he bit into the pillow and came, splattering his stomach and covering Slade's hand. Slade sped up slightly and came shortly thereafter.

Robin wiped himself off using the sheet and rolled over to his side of the bed. He pushed his head into his pillow to muffle his sobs like he usually did when he couldn't make it to the shower to cry. It wasn't the time to cry, one part of his mind calmly noted even while the rest of his broke and sobbed. But this time, his sobs were too loud. He could hear them echo around the room and he knew for sure that Slade could hear. That didn't stop him from letting it all out though.

He sobbed harder, pounded his fists into the pillow angrily, and couldn't understand why his body had enjoyed that. Why did his body still love the man? Why did he have to be a weak, crying boy all day long? Why was he breaking down right in front of this monster? Why was he being put through all of this shit? Why, why, why?

He was so sick of everything. This routine of waking up, getting fucked, eating, getting fucked, training, getting fucked, do anything, and then getting fucked. If he had to spend one more day like that he was going to do something completely drastic.

Robin wasn't sure when he had stopped crying, showered, and dressed himself again but when he finally came back to himself he was standing in the kitchen, glaring at Slade.

"Apprentice," Slade cleared his throat, "I've decided to send you out on your first mission tonight. I think it'll do you some good to get your mind off of things. You have five minutes to eat while I prep you for your mission."

Alright, and here is when the first five minutes of the episode Apprentice Part Two takes place. Whoot!


	8. Chapter 8

**Title:** A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M** throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin in the beginning with RobinRed X in future chapters  
**Chapter Summary:** The Apprentice Arc comes to an end.

**Theory of Omission**

After the mission and the argument with Slade, Robin had gone to bed alone, for once, and woke up alone as well. All the while, he was still contemplating Slade's words. What was the man trying to do? He wanted to be Robin's father now as well. Wasn't being Robin's crazy boyfriend/lover, archenemy, and 'master' enough for him?

Robin was really sick of dealing with Slade. He just wanted the Titans to come in, bust open his stupid mask, and then go home. But like that would ever happen.

Even though Slade had left him alone the night before and he had completed his first mission, Robin was still tired. He had tossed and turned for a few hours, his mind turning over Slade's words and trying to figure them out. He felt like he had even been thinking over what Slade had said during his dreams though he knew he hadn't slept all that much.

He just hoped that Slade was going to give him another easy day. He needed it.

* * *

Apparently, going one night without sex made Slade an angry bastard. Or it might have been the fact that Robin had called him a psychotic asshole before he had stormed off to bed and locked the door.

Breakfast had been silent and from there on it had been nothing but Slade's angry remarks as Robin failed to impress him during his training exercises. He managed to take down five Sladebots with a single move but that still wasn't good enough for Slade and he was forced to do it again and again. Slade then set up different Sladebots around the main room and called them targets. Robin had to hit all twenty targets in under three minutes.

The Sladebots fought back, they were spread all over the large room, and a few were even up in the rafters, hiding and moving so they were never in the same spot for more than a few seconds. It wasn't humanly possible. Heck, it was barely metahuman possible to complete.

"I'm not sure if you know this or not," Robin bit out after knocking out all twenty targets in five minutes and twenty-three seconds. "But I am not a metahuman."

"No, you are my apprentice and I expect you to do this simple task without failing." Slade snapped, starting the timer once again. "Begin,"

After five more tries, his time getting better each time, Robin's exhaustion finally caught up to him. His legs were shaking as he bent over, hands on his quivering knees as he panted.

"Again, Robin," Slade ordered, still not satisfied with the time of three minutes and four seconds.

Robin moaned, "Slade, please, I need to rest. At least get a water break," he knew he was dehydrated due to the headache currently trying to split his head in two.

"If you want water you'll have to earn it. Now, begin," Slade demanded once more and watched as Robin forced himself into a graceful jump, arching his back as he flew to the rafters.

Taking out the three in the rafters first with one well placed kick and two carefully aimed Slade-designed-shurikens took thirty seconds. From the eagle eye vantage point that he had, it was easy to strike down the four bots in the west sector with more of the exploding shurikens. He dropped down to finish off the five in northern area with his bo-staff and used his weapon to catapult over Slade's throne and dispose of the two hanging in the south by throwing the one into the other.

He was over a minute and forty-five seconds by the time he reached the east section and began hunting down the remaining six in the shadows. One managed to grab him from behind but his bo-staff was still drawn and easily took off its head with a swing.

Weaving around, he found another two and swiped the feet of one to thrust his staff into its chest and ram into the other one with his steel-clad boots. The last three ran out of the shadows and threw their own styled shurikens at him as he emerged. He blocked them with a twirl of his staff and aimed a kick at one's chest, only to be blocked as well.

Twisting his body, Robin did a round house kick to its head and a spinning kick into another one. It was a bad idea in his condition as the world continued to spin and the pressure in his head increased tenfold. He looked at the remaining Sladebot, two feet in front of him and at the red glowing timer directly behind the target.

The timer stated two minutes and forty-seven seconds but Robin was too fatigued to even stand any longer. Falling over onto his back with a loud grunt, he panted for air as he attempted to regain his breath.

Slade looked over at his exhausted apprentice and glared. One target was still untouched and directly in front of him; that was unacceptable. After seeing the way Robin had easily out maneuvered his friends the night before, Slade knew that the boy had been hiding his true skill level the entire time he trained him. Robin was holding out on him. Not to mention the boy's sudden horrible attitude.

If the boy wanted to hold out on him and treat him like dirt after everything Slade gave him, then Slade was going to teach the little brat who was in charge. "I believe you still have one more target, Robin, and your training is hardly over for the day." Slade growled as he sailed across the room in a few easy strides to loom over the boy.

Robin's eyes were closed and his mouth hung wide open as he gasped and panted, his chest moving rapidly with each ragged breath. "I…can't, Slade. I'm too…tired," Robin moaned as he forced his eyes open and looked up on the man, begging him to take pity. His head was still spinning and it was starting to make him feel nauseous. Since Slade recorded his vital signs, as he was informed the night before, obviously the man must have known that he was feeling unwell.

Slade did not look happy with him and normally he would have been worried that an upset Slade would lead to his friends' being harmed or even himself, but he was too worn out to even care.

"If you are so tired then you should sleep at night." Slade folded his arms over his chest in annoyance. He knew about the boy's unhealthy insomnia habit and he felt no remorse since Robin did it on his own.

"I'd love to," Robin glared as he regained his breath and with it some anger. "Too bad you don't let me sleep at night, you bastard." He growled as he tightened his fists at his sides even while he laid out on the ground. He did not feel like being yelled at when he was obviously physically sick and on the urge of being mentally sick as well.

Slade's eye narrowed at Robin's words. "Fine, then to allow you more sleep at night I'll move all of our nightly activities to the daytime. Does it make you feel better if I work to your schedule?" Slade hissed as he reached for his belt and unclicked it.

Robin's eyes widened, his stomaching rolling with the thought, and he struggled to sit up despite his head's warnings. "I'll…I'll finish the training."

"Oh no, Robin, it's too late now for you to change your mind." Slade pressed his heavy boot to Robin's chest and forced the boy down again on his back. "You want to sleep at night, and seeing as I'm a reasonable guy, I'll compromise with you. After all, you are right; a growing boy should sleep at night." Robin tried to pry Slade's foot off and instead Slade pressed more of his weight onto the boy, receiving a loud gasp of pain out of Robin's pressured lungs. "So let's make you nice and tired."

"Don't touch me!" Robin shouted as loud as he could as he squirmed under the pinning weight of Slade.

Suddenly, Slade's foot lifted from Robin and the always-a-Titan-at-heart boy tried to lunge away, only to be kicked hard in the ribs and sent rolling several feet until he finally came to a painful halt on his back. "Stop telling me what to do, apprentice." Slade hissed as he strolled slowly over to the smaller male. He was well aware of Robin's condition and he knew no reason to have to hurry while the boy wasn't fast enough to go anywhere. Besides, he knew that Robin had no where to go even if he did try to run. He was going to teach Robin who was in charge once and for all.

Robin clutched at his pained side while he sat up on his knees, thinking over the probability that Slade had broken one of his ribs. A large hand rested on the back of his head and his eyes widened in fright as his face was pushed to the floor and his ass hung up in the air. "Please, don't, Slade." But his plea had fallen on deaf ears as Slade forced Robin's pants down to restrain his knees.

As Slade straddled Robin's legs and traced the boy's red crack, Robin tried to plead again. "Please, Slade, it hurts so much." He already felt the tears start to threaten in his eyes and it disgusted him.

"If you didn't move around then it wouldn't hurt as much." Slade growled as he pressed his erection against Robin's sore, puckered spot and caused the boy to cry out in a bit of pain and a lot of fear already. One would think that he was use to it by now. Thrusting his hips, Slade entered Robin faster than he ever had before due to the position that provided deep penetration as well as help from gravity.

Robin banged his fist against the cold floor as Slade unforgivably moved within him once again. He didn't scream or curse, his throat felt too sore for any of that, but his tears fell rapidly from his puffy, masked eyes. His stomach was feeling much worse, his migraine was on the verge of driving him insane, and he now had to deal with the flaming pain of Slade pulsing inside of him. Having his body at the odd angle was starting to make his back sore as well.

He closed his eyes, praying to some merciful God or whatever was currently watching him suffer, that the pain would leave him any way that it could. Robin really felt like he was on the verge of dying and he hoped that he would. Or better yet, he hoped Slade died. The man obviously didn't care about him; he had made that clear the first time he had raped him. But now he seemed totally heartless as he continued to slide in and out of Robin at a fast pace, panting and moaning as he moved along. He wasn't even trying to make it good for Robin as well.

Robin hated him, he really hated him. From that moment on, Robin knew that he would never forgive Slade. No matter what Slade did from there on out, he would never forgive him for being so uncaring and neglectful of Robin's own feelings and health. It was now completely over between them and forever would be.

Mixing his scream of pain with Slade's groan of pleasure, Robin sobbed. "Hate…Hate you…" he mumbled over and over again as Slade pulled out of him. "…Hate…" Slade made himself decent and Robin did the same, slowly.

"Get up, apprentice, you have yet to finish your training." Slade hissed as he turned and started to walk away. Robin shakily started to stand but the room began to spin and he collapsed to his hands and knees, shaking all over. "Robin," Slade started but stopped when Robin hurled violently on the floor.

"Robin," Slade hurried to the boy's side as Robin vomited the meager meals some more. He kneeled next to Robin and placed his hand on Robin's shuddering back, rubbing soft circles.

"Don't touch me, I hate you!" Robin shrieked as he closed his eyes and fiercely shook some more. Vomit ran down his chin and he sat back on his knees for a moment as he tried to get his rolling stomach to settle. He felt awful.

"Relax, Robin," Slade removed his hand. "I know you're just feeling sick and you don't mean anything--"

"I mean it!" Robin glared at Slade and then balanced on his hands again as he rocked a bit and then threw up once more. "I hate you so much, Slade." He hurled the last bit of food from his stomach painfully onto the floor as his tears continued to trail from his face and splash onto and mix with the meager, half digested meals. "I wish I had never met you. You only cause me pain and I…I…You're a monster! A heartless monster and I don't know how I could have ever had loved you but I know what you are now and I don't love you anymore and I never will again; I hate you!" He finalized.

Slade kneeled next to him in silence for a moment before he got up and left, again leaving Robin to himself to deal with his problems. Robin didn't care though. He didn't want Slade near him anyway. Then he started to dry heave. Tears started to fall faster from his eyes; he was in so much pain and it was Slade's fault just like it always was.

Moments later, Slade returned as Robin finally stopped crying and his stomach began to settle. He held a glass of water and a couple of pills in his hands. "Here," he handed them to Robin. "It should help make you feel better." Robin swallowed the pills, not caring if they made him fall unconscious and die if it would only get rid of some of the pain, and drowned the water in three gulps. He moodily handed the glass back to Slade, avoiding looking at the man. He couldn't even stand the sight of the man anymore.

"I want you to spend the rest of today resting instead. Do you need help walking to the bedroom?" Slade asked with a hint of concern in his voice. Robin ignored it and shakily stood on his own unbalanced feet. He staggered angrily from the room without looking back or answering Slade's question.

Once he was in the hallway, he leaned against the wall to support him and slowly made it back to the bedroom. As soon as Robin hit the bed, he passed out blissfully.

* * *

Robin drifted into a dreamless sleep after a while. His exhausted body didn't even bother to try to toss and turn while he slept, even though his arm was becoming numb.

He was awoken to the feeling of soft fingers on his face. He blinked and groaned a bit woozily as he opened his eyes. Slade was stroking his face, he could have guessed. "Robin--" the man's voice was as gentle as it normally was when he thought he was making things up to Robin. The thought that the man would touch him again after so little time frightened Robin and he jolted up and away from the man.

"Oh god," Robin instantly regretted the action as his stomach revolted and his head screamed at him in anger. He glared at Slade as he held both his head and stomach. "What?" he bit out, fear completely gone and only his anger remaining.

Slade held out a few more pills and a glass of water again. Robin took it greedily and gulped the water down in one go. "You've been asleep for five hours. How are you feeling?" Slade asked.

"Like you really care," Robin snarled as he kept the glass in his hand, choosing to glare at it instead of Slade.

Sighing and opting not to respond, Slade rose from the edge of the bed. "I think some fresh air would be good for you. So, I've decided to send you out on your next mission a littler earlier than I planned." Slade looked at Robin carefully. "It's at Wayne Enterprises but I'm sure, even with your illness, you won't have any problems handling this job."

Robin's eyes widened and he looked up at Slade, stunned for a moment. Did the man know? No, Robin decided, Slade couldn't possibly know the connection that Robin the Boy Wonder had with Bruce Wayne.

"You should know the building pretty well already, due to your little heists as Red X; all of the Wayne buildings are built with the same design in mind." Robin glared at the glass in his hand when Red X was mentioned. He hated to be reminded of his mistakes and creating Red X had been one of his biggest mistakes in his entire Super Hero career. After all, it had led him closer to Slade.

"Fine," Robin growled, "What do you want me to steal?"

* * *

Robin had to think fast, he had to act fast; time was running out. His team, his friends who refused to loose to Slade, were withering in pain before him and Slade was behind him, still talking to him. "This is the price for your disobedience, Robin. Now do as I command. Attack!" Slade ordered and Robin frantically looked around the room. He spotted the device, the same one that had infected his friends,

"No." Simple as that, Robin finally felt like himself again. Then he made his move. He lunged for the devise as he ignored Slade's outcry and grabbed onto it, holding onto the machine for dear life even through the intense pain.

Then it happened, his name and bloodstream was added up onto the monitors. Robin stood, his body glowing red and feeling the pain of Slade's nanoprobes. "New deal, Slade; if I lose my friends, you lose your apprentice." He groaned as he moved closer to stand defiantly right in front of Slade. "And I know how you hate to lose."

Robin collapsed to the floor and continued to groan in pain. He didn't know if Slade was actually going to let him and the other Titans live but he did know one thing; he was no longer going to be under Slade's control; he'd be free or die trying.

Slade tossed the controller—the hated controller that had been in control of Robin's fears and compliance for the longest of time—and the pain stopped. Slade had his wrists clenched in anger by his sides and brought up his foot to kick out at Robin.

Acting quickly, Robin grabbed his leg with an appreciative smirk as Slade's eye widened in surprise. He punched Slade and grinned as he called out, "Titans! Go!"

Watching the other Titans fly into action and deliver attack after attack onto Slade made it truly feel like everything was back to. Slade was going to be defeated and he was going to be back with his friends in no time. Robin smiled as he delivered a high kick to Slade's already cracked mask.

He landed gracefully and his eyes widened as the side of Slade's mask broke off and fell to the floor. Slade's eye widened and he retreated further into the shadows before Robin could catch a glimpse of his face. "Another day, Robin," Slade threatened as he worked a few buttons and levers. "Another day,"

With that said, the lair started to collapse and Robin watched as Slade disappeared during all the hectic mass. The gears fell, the pipes collapsed; Robin swiped the half cracked mask while he dodged everything and made for the door. In the flashing red light, Robin opened the door, basked in the pure, whit light, and turned to his teammates.

"Let's go home," Robin knew that the nightmare was over.

* * *

**A.N. **Okay this chapter was choppy but that's because I was following the Apprentice Part 2 episode. Anyways, this ends the Apprentice Arc part of this fic! Whoot! Do you know what that means? In, at the very most, three more chapters Red X will appear! And I know a lot of you are thinking 'Robin is Slade's and no one else's!' Well, trust me, I hear you, I really do, but since when does Red X ever play by the rules? Also, he is a thief so Robin can belong to Slade still, but Red X can just steal him away for a while. Also, it's not like Slade's ever gone for good, especially from one of my fics. So whether you're rooting or booing Red X, don't worry too much about it and just continue to enjoy this. Because you are enjoying this, right? I mean, come on, there's been a sex scene in almost every single chapter so far!


	9. Chapter 9

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin in the beginning with RobinRed X in future chapters  
**Chapter Summary:** Robin's path to recovery.

**Author's Note:** This is pretty much all of season two and then up to season three's episode 'Haunted.' I had to revisit a lot of the episodes to write this chapter but I wanted this to be done so I could say; MERRY CHRISTMAS, WYNJA! This chapter is dedicated to her for the wonderful picture she drew me on DA for this fic. Go to deviantart and look up Wynjas. All of her art is wonderful and often motivates me to write!

* * *

**Recovering Day by Day**

It all seemed like a dream; just too good to be true. He couldn't believe it, but it was true. He was home again. Robin slowly walked around his room and smiled at the familiar space as he gently ran his hand over his desk. He had missed the cozy feeling of his bedroom. It felt so nice to be in a place that he could call his own.

Robin smiled and took a deep breath, inhaling only his own smell. He was in his room; his.

He sat down at his desk and opened his laptop, turning it on after a full week of being trapped inside Slade's littler world. Seven days of hell; Robin felt like he had aged seven years just by putting up with everything Slade put him through.

As he waited for his computer to boot up, Robin looked at the open file that was on his desk. He frowned as he saw Slade's name written on top and one question written below it. Who is Slade?

Robin frowned and quickly closed the file. He forgot about his computer and went to his designated work room. The wall jumped at him with the articles and clippings all on Slade. Half of Slade's mask stared blankly at him from where Robin had hung it. He decided that he would rarely be in that room again.

He couldn't remove the collection or else his friends would all know that something had definitely gone wrong during the past week. Besides, Slade was gone, at least, for now. But he was truly gone from Robin's life.

Robin dropped off the file and left the room. Being in there meant being closer to that addiction that Slade had been for him at first, that mystery that had been Slade and drew him close to the man.

He knew who Slade was now, actually he knew what Slade was; a monster. He wasn't interested in figuring the mastermind out anymore, he only wanted to figure out how to get him in jail and was resolute in doing so.

* * *

A month came and past as months often do; four weeks, seven days a week, Tuesday after Monday and so on. Robin had spent as much time with his friends as he could. He watched movies with them, played video games, went to the mall, ate pizza, and fought villains. All villains, except for Slade, that is.

All of his friends treaded lightly on the subject of what had happened to him during his experience as an apprentice, even though he knew they were beyond curious. They asked if Slade had hurt him, if the training sessions were brutal, if Slade had allowed him food and a bed, things like that. He had told them what they needed to know and Cyborg had run tests on him to make sure he was okay. Luckily, none of those tests involved a rape-kit and none of the questions that they asked suggested any of that.

He figured that his friends never thought that would actually happen to him. He was a hero; rape didn't happen to heroes. Oh, how they were wrong to believe such a thing. But it wasn't like Robin was going to correct them.

Robin never focused on the bad anymore even though it meant that he had to cut out his old habits of being fully intent on his work, essentially a part of who he is, and he took sleeping pills at night to stop nightmares despite all of the warnings he received as a sidekick from his mentor to never rely on pills. But Robin didn't mind; he had to adjust to what had happened to him.

He accepted the support from his friends as he could, even though they weren't even aware that they were helping him heal since none of them knew he needed to be healed.

When Starfire would place a hand on his shoulder and smile at him, he hid his initial flinch and smiled back, slowly getting use to touches that weren't sexual and hurtful. He had even hugged her after she had returned with the Clock of Eternity that Warp had tried to steal. It was nice to feel her slender arms and squishy chest pressed against him; it was so different from Slade.

When he was on the couch in between Cyborg and Beast Boy while they played video games, he focused on not feeling trapped between them and ignored how their legs sometimes bumped into his own or their thighs rested against his. He only cracked jokes with them and kept pushing Cyborg's controller in a chance to help Beast Boy actually win for once.

When Raven would look at him with a sadder expression than normal on her pale face, he would turn around and avoid her for the next few hours. He had re-read over the files he had on his friends and he knew that Raven had an empathic power and would be the best one to talk to about what had happened. But he wasn't ready to talk about it; there wasn't any reason to relive it by talking.

He just didn't want to think about it anymore. In fact, Robin didn't even like thinking about any of the other villains either due to the way his thoughts drifted. All of his thoughts kept leading him to only one place. More specifically, one person.

Each robbery made him wonder if Slade was behind the gang of idiots. Did Slade manipulate them into stealing for him as he slowly rebuilt his lair? Every time Cinderblock reappeared for a random rampage, was Slade trying to get his attention again? A forest fire by the outskirts of the city made him remember the first battle he ever had with the villain.

His mind was driving him crazy. And it seemed to show by the way all of his friends, not just Raven, started looking at him worriedly. Each of them tried to approach him and subtly, or not-so-subtly in Beast Boy's case, try to get him to talk about his problems.

Really, he just wanted to be left alone. But that was what led to Slade tricking him in the first place. He couldn't stand the thought that history could repeat itself and Slade would once again be back trying to coax the lonely little Robin bird away from his team with lies once more.

Robin knew he was having a lot of problems. Especially when he started to feel a hatred for his own name. For Robin. Slade always called him Robin and it disgusted him that the man tainted that. The nickname that his mother used for him, the title of a superhero that he had created it into; it was a verbal expression of his parents' affection, of Batman's pride in him. Slade had truly ruined everything for him.

That was when Robin decided he couldn't keep on going the way he had been. Robin decided that he was going to finally get over Slade. He wasn't going to let Slade ruin everything for him.

Determined, Robin suddenly stood from the couch in the main room, causing a few eyes to turn to him as he dramatically stormed out of the room and straight into the file room. He sat down at the old computer attached there and pulled up the electronical files. Batman had taught him to always have two different copies of the same file. He had hard forms written on paper and electronical ones.

But for the report he was about to write, he knew he would only be able to write it once. Robin took a deep breath and began to type out his experience.

* * *

Days later, Robin felt like the same old person he use to be. He was back to his good old self. He pummeled Mumbo on his own, took back to patrolling the city, and was back to cataloging almost everything. Well, he was truly back to normal. Robin had learned from his past mistakes so he made sure that when he became too involved in his work he took a break and watched a movie with his friends.

Everything seemed wonderful again, even his name.

Then came the day that a giant scorpion in the outskirts of Jump City was reported to be seen; Cyborg's radar picked it out in the desert. Things changed a little bit after that. But not technically for the worst.

Not until Slade showed up again or, at least, signs of Slade.

The moment he started to beep he felt his heart-rate speed up in a very bad way. He hoped that Slade wouldn't be in the area where they located him. And even more so, he hoped that Slade wouldn't try to talk to him. It was still too soon to see Slade. He was still too hurt to be angry enough to take him down.

Then he figured out that Slade staged the entire burglary to meet up with Terra. She told them that they merely fought, that was all. Robin knew she was lying but instead of calling her out on it, he mentioned her lack of control on her powers. With metahumans, their powers were always a delicate subject.

Robin pretended to feel guilty for driving Terra away. He honestly did feel a little bad for Beast Boy; he knew that his friend had liked her. But in reality, he was glad she was gone. She obviously brought Slade's attention since Slade had signaled her out. If Slade wanted her then Robin wanted her far away from himself.

They didn't see Terra for a while then. They did have other villains to take care of and Robin's mind drifted away from Slade's sudden appearance for a while. Until his date with Killer Moth's daughter, Kitten.

He kept imagining that Slade was going to appear and kill the blonde. It was actually a pretty nice thought. Until he realized that Slade would then probably grab him and run off. Robin didn't really like that thought.

He also didn't like that the same day Terra came back, so did Slade. Her very first question, "Which team am I on?" She had asked. He wasn't too sure himself.

Then it finally happened, Slade called. "Robin, good to see you again. I hope I haven't called at a bad time." Robin was reminded of one of the earlier times Slade had called, when he had just gotten out of the shower.

He clenched his teeth together and pushed all memories aside as he challenged Slade about the worm. He thought the mission would go well. It wasn't like he was alone; Terra and Raven were with him. But then Slade got him alone in the elevator.

"Why are you attacking the Tower, Slade?" Robin growled as the elevator slowly ascended.

"What? Not even a hello; didn't you miss me, Robin? I missed you," Slade purred as the two began to circle around the tiny space in the elevator. Robin could barely see Raven and Terra as the elevator raised higher and higher. It really was just him and Slade once again.

Then the elevator came to a quick stop as Slade pressed a hidden button on the elevator. Robin stumbled forward and Slade grabbed his shoulders, using his momentum to pull him against himself. Robin froze as Slade's strong arms wrapped around him in a tight hug. He felt like the air was being pressed out of him.

"It's been too long, Robin." Slade murmured quietly.

"Not long enough if you ask me," Robin growled and struggled in the man's embrace.

Slade chuckled, "You're quite the little actor. But you can drop the act; I'm almost positive that your two little friends are too distracted with trying to save your home." Robin growled and Slade gripped his chin, forcing him to actually meet Slade's eye for the first time since his horrid apprenticeship. "If you loose your home, you can always come back and live with me."

Robin's eyes widened and he snarled as he brought his knee up and into the unprotected skin on Slade's thigh. Slade grunted and released Robin. "You little brat," he growled and punched him, sending him back against the wall. Slade smacked the hidden button and the elevator started to rise again, causing Robin to stumble and land on the floor.

He looked up just in time to see the interior of the ceiling starting to crumble away. "The Tower," Robin shouted desperately.

"Going down," Slade replied maliciously and jumped out of the elevator. Robin looked up just in time to see that the elevator was going to crash into the ceiling. He hooked shot out of the elevator and stood on one of the many construction beams as he watched Terra and Raven finally working together.

The two managed to save the home and the rest of the Titans thought Terra deserved the chance to become a team member due to her effort. Robin agreed but he was disappointed that everyone seemed to be on an agreement with Terra being on the team, even Raven now.

He still didn't like having her around. It was too suspicious that she could suddenly control her powers. She must have had training from someone but she wouldn't tell who.

And the next day, Terra and Beast Boy disappeared as an army of Slade-bots attacked the Tower from the inside.

* * *

Then he had to have the misfortune of breaking his arm while chasing down a two-bit punk named Johnny Rancid. Robin couldn't believe how badly he had messed up then, especially with the little Larry thing that had appeared out of his head.

What had made all of that experience worse was that after his arm had finally been healed and Larry got him back to his world, Slade had called.

"Hello?" Robin answered his communicator, half-asleep from the long day he had been through.

"I wasn't sure if I should send you flowers and chocolates over your little accident, Robin." Robin's eyes snapped open, wide awake from hearing Slade's voice. "You really should be more careful, my little bird."

"Shut up, Slade, you have no right to be telling me to be more careful when you've put me through more dangerous situations." Robin snapped. "In fact, you don't even have a right to be calling me."

"Robin, relax, you're too high strung for a boy your age. I just called to assure you that I forgive you for everything." Slade explained. Robin's mouth hung open as he stared at the man in disbelief. "I wasn't lying in the elevator, Robin; I miss you too much to remain upset over a lost lair and a broken promise. I want to see you again."

"Well, I don't forgive you," Robin snarled. "I don't forgive you for anything and we're through, Slade. We stopped dating a long, long time ago. So just forget this number." Robin snapped the phone shut. He glared at the electronic in his hand and debated whether or not he should throw it across the room. But if it broke, he'd have to explain why he needed a new one to Cyborg and he really didn't feel like having to go through that.

Unfortunately, the communicator started to ring again. Robin grinded his teeth together but answered it. "I just told you to forget this--"

"If you ever hang up on me again I will make you regret it." Slade snarled and Robin's eyes widened at the shock of hearing him so angry. "Now you listen to me and you listen well, Robin. I want to meet with you tomorrow night, eight o'clock sharp. Come to the old lair; we'll talk." Slade's voice was still tight with anger.

"No," Robin shook his head. "I'm not going back there and I'm not meeting up with you ever again. We're over, Slade." Robin grabbed the top of the communicator, ready to close it, but paused as Slade started yelling again.

"Don't you dare hang up on me. Robin, if you do not meet me tomorrow I promise you will regret it. Robin--" Robin slammed the communicator shut and tossed it away from him as he curled around his knees on his bed.

The communicator didn't stop ringing for an hour that night.

The next day, he had to watch as Terra and Slade's other minions slowly took out his team and eventually, even he fell. He still didn't regret meeting up with Slade though.

Robin regretted letting his guard down around her. But now everyone seemed on terms about getting back at both Terra and Slade. He knew he couldn't avoid the man anymore. They would have to fight soon. And it would be the last fight.

* * *

It was all over. Terra had saved the day with the last of her strength, sacrificing herself. And she had taken out Slade as well.

He should have been thrilled, he should have been reassured that he would never see Slade again. The man had fallen through hot magma. Slade was only human; even he couldn't have survived that.

But Robin felt cheated out of his justice.

The last fight was supposed to be him versus Slade. He was supposed to finally get through to Slade about all the pain he had caused him and take him down. He was supposed to see Slade's face and then send the man off to jail.

Instead, Terra got her justice and then died.

Honestly, Robin just felt like it wasn't fair. He also felt like it wasn't over.

That was why he felt sort of relieved to see Slade again in the woods that dark, rainy night. Even though that night grew long and very painful, he felt like he was given his final battle. And he thought he was loosing it. But he finally understood that it was just in his head, Slade wasn't really there.

Except he still seemed to be.

* * *

Robin tumbled out of bed from his nightmare. It was the same nightmare he'd been having since Slade had died; Slade's skeletal hands pushing him down into dark sheets and ripping away his bright clothes.

He was still injured from his fight against the hallucinate dust but bit back his cry of pain as he landed on his injured arm on the floor. He felt the presence of someone else in his room right away. His nightmare came back to him and he slowly, carefully, started to crawl toward the door.

He was too panicked and injured to be able to properly fight someone. He needed his teammates.

The door opened on its own accord as Robin finally reached it and Robin gasped, falling back from the door as it opened. A look of wide-eyed fear crossed his features as he realized who stood in front of him; Slade; it was really him. Then his expression compressed into grim determination.

Slade bent over, looming above Robin's grounded position as he reached for him, and Robin used his injured arm and pushed up, kicking Slade in the jaw. He flipped backwards from the kick and stood in a fighting position, ready to take Slade down once and for all.

But Slade's mask was clattering to the floor and Robin's breathe hitched in his throat as he stared at the skeletal face looking back at him. His fear made him freeze and Slade easily pushed him onto his bed.

Cyborg had told him to get some rest but Slade had told him that he would never rest and neither would Robin. But Slade wasn't real, hadn't been real. He had figured out that it was just dust and that it was just a figment of his imagination. So why was Slade pining him down to a bed again? Why was Slade even there?

"Please," Robin moaned as he felt Slade wiggle his knee between his legs and spread them widely apart. "Haven't you done enough to me already for one day?" Robin felt tears pricking at his eyes. He wished he could move to reach his lamp. If only he could turn that light on and make Slade disappear again; make his nightmare go away.

"What doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger, Robin." Slade whispered into his ear and Robin shuddered. Slade's breath was cold as death.

"Then this will only make you stronger." Robin growled and kicked between Slade's legs. The man grunted and Robin broke his grip and reached for the lamp. He turned it on and light flooded the room.

Slade was still there. The man snarled and his eyes glowed red. Robin shouted until Slade smacked him upside the head.

* * *

She had seen him defeat an army of Sladebots all on his own. She had seen him conquer so many villains and lead them to victory numerous times. She had always wanted to remember his strength, his courage, and his skills. Even if it was long overdue for his healing to begin, Raven really didn't want to know that Robin's face could crumple into an expression of shame and fear.

She didn't want to see her fearless leader huddled in on himself while sitting on the floor, trying to make himself small enough to be overlooked by her and simply disappear. She walked silently over to him and placed a soft hand on his shoulder. Robin flinched and avoided eye contact with her.

She told the others to leave and after some quiet argument, they finally did leave. She had seen into his head and she would not let him hide any longer.

Raven wanted him to be a resolute warrior once more and she was determined to help him become one once more. She knew that her own problems would be starting soon and he was the only one that could help her save the world.

She simply sat next to him, her hand continuing to rest on his shoulder, as she waited three hours until he finally started to speak as the sun began to rise.

It was the dawning of a new day but after that morning, everything was as it should be again. At least for a little while.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yes, I skipped over the episode 'X' but don't worry, Red X's time will come to shine! And also, yes, again, this chapter is pretty much filler. The next chapter will also be filler and, if my plan's go right, will be posted sometime next week. HOLD ME TO MY WORD AND SEND ME AN ANNOYING NOTE EACH DAY UNTIL THE NEW CHAPTER IS OUT!

So, I'll cover the rest of season three, four, and five in the next filler chapter since Slade's barely there, Red X will be introduced into the story, and people will be happy that I'm not dead. Oh, for anyone out there that thinks Robin's recovery took too long, trust me, recovering from rape is very hard to do when you never admit to it. It's much easier to tell others and let them help you through the process then try to repress it. Rape can't be repressed no matter how hard you try.


	10. Chapter 10

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Past Sladin with RobinRed X  
**Chapter Summary:** Robin is finally starting to move on.

**Author's Note:** And with this chapter, we move away from the Teen Titans show and all of it's wonderful seasons to the real story. For all Sladin fans, don't worry, there will be more Sladin, of course. But the main focus will be on Robin and Red X for the next few chapters

* * *

**Moving Forward**

It was the end of the world. Literally and for everyone, not just for Robin because Slade was back, for real this time. Everyone could see him now; the dastardly man was truly back. And he had a message which, for once, wasn't for Robin.

In fact, Slade seemed fine with avoiding Robin. He didn't taunt him, didn't try to talk to him outside of battles, Slade barely did more than cast snide remarks and look at Robin when he had no other choice to. Slade even avoided real fights with him. Instead he used his newly gifted powers of flame from Trigon.

Robin was fine with that. Really. It seemed like his rapist was over him finally. Good, that was great. He was sick of being in the spotlight every time Slade came to town. Besides, Robin was over Slade too, thanks to Raven.

In fact, once everything was figured out, Robin wanted to laugh in Slade's face. He seemed to have a master now and that irony made Robin grin.

If that master hadn't currently knocked him and the rest of his teammates, aside from Raven, away and into an old building, he probably would have laughed when Slade arrived seeking a truce for once. Instead, Robin agreed to travel with Slade to the fiery underworld to find Raven.

Robin took his time hugging Starfire goodbye and was glad that Slade was annoyed at the public display of affection. He wanted the bastard to be jealous, even though he had no interest in Starfire other than friendship. Slade didn't know that.

"Before we continue, a warning," Slade offered sullenly. "If we succeed, I can't guarantee you'll like what you find."

"I'll take my chances," Robin decided and the two pushed open the large doors and started their trip. The long corridor glowed with an orange light and the ravens, that seemed to be carved from the walls, watched them with orange eyes. They stepped onto a ledge overlooking vast ravine with lava flowing through it. A small rowboat seemed to be waiting for them.

Robin glanced at Slade as they climbed down the ledge. It seemed almost romantic, if the lava was water instead. Still, Slade probably would have thought it was romantic and for a split moment Robin thought that Slade was perhaps somehow behind this setup. Then he remembered that they were going to hell and that didn't really seem like a romantic setup no matter how you looked at it.

"You work the rudder," Slade ordered briefly as he untied the boat and jumped it. Robin frowned but sat in the back and worked the steering device. Slade used the pole and pushed off from the edge.

They rode in silence for a moment until Robin finally decided to speak up. "So why did you do it; for money, status, those dark powers?" He asked, generally curious as to what Slade would betray the entire world for.

"Not everything is so cut and dry, Robin." Slade growled and glanced over his shoulder briefly.

"Selling out our world for your own personal gain seems pretty cut and dry to me." Robin argued. For a moment, the thought that maybe Slade was doing it for him passed through his mind but he hurriedly pushed it aside. Slade wasn't stupid enough to sell out the entire world to try and get Robin back.

"With or without me, there was no stopping this." Slade stated matter of factly and continued to paddle.

"But you played a part and just like everything else you've ever done, it's made people suffer." Robin accused bitterly, reminding Slade of all his past mistakes.

"It's what I do best." Slade retorted. Robin felt like the man wanted to say more but instead he remained quiet for a few moments.

Then they were forced to battle against giant magma monsters. Robin hated to admit it, but what Slade had said during the battle was true. Old habits did seem to die hard. He had matched Slade move for move, he was entirely synced with the man for every kick and punch. He had even offered his arms to Slade to grab and sling him around; he had permitted Slade's touch.

After the battle was up, something happened that Robin thought would never happen, not even if the world ended. Slade's mask had fallen off.

And his face was that of a skeleton. It took all of Robin's self control not to scream and recoil away from Slade right there and then. His nightmare hit him and his breath caught in his throat. But one question really made him shudder; was it all just a bad dream, or had some of it been real? Had Slade with his skeleton face really appear in Robin's room that night?

The truth came out then. At least, some of the truth did. Slade had really died and Raven's father had offered him a trade; deliver a message and Raven herself to Trigon in exchange for his flesh and blood back. Trigon apparently was a fan of loop holes though and when Raven came willingly it meant that Slade hadn't done his job which meant he didn't earn his part of the bargain.

What really stung Robin was that he wasn't just helping Raven, he was helping Slade as well. He was going to hell and back with someone who had put him through hell and it was helping him. Robin's emotions were eating him up from the inside. He wanted to scream bloody murder, he wanted to refuse to help Slade, and he wanted to break all of the man's bones since that was all he consisted of.

But he couldn't do anything. Raven was depending on him. His teammates were depending on him. The world was depending on him to work with Slade.

They had remained silent for most of the trip until they parted. Robin wondered if he would ever see Slade after everything was done. He had tried to tell the man that he never wanted to see him again and Slade had said he wouldn't expect anything less. That didn't mean that he would stay away from Robin and Robin was well aware of that. But he had more important things to tend to.

* * *

Robin had seen Slade later, to finish Trigon off. Some would say Slade was trying to redeem himself. Robin knew differently. Slade really did just want to make Trigon suffer for going back on his part of their deal. There was nothing more to it. Slade had disappeared instantly after the demon lord was defeated.

Robin ignored the part of him that wondered if Slade was only distant from him during his return due to the fact that he was nothing but bones. Now that Slade was human, or close to it, once again, would he return to bothering him? 'Two old friends;' is that what Slade really thought? Or was Slade still in delusion that they were a couple or did he understand that Robin hadn't mourned him?

Only time could honestly tell.

* * *

Luckily for Robin, he didn't see Slade again for some time. He had other villains to deal with. Like all of the villains currently cheering for the fact that he was about to be frozen. Things were looking pretty well for the Brotherhood of Evil.

All the villains cheered loudly, all but two. One was an old man who joined the Brotherhood because of his friend's orders to keep a close watch over the exact boy who was about to be frozen. But Robin wasn't aware of that. He didn't even know the old man.

The old man, though, certainly knew him. And Wintergreen also knew that Slade wasn't going to be happy when he contacted him with the news that his interest was about to be a Popsicle.

The other villain that just stood and watched was carefully trying to calculate how he could get out of the secret base with a frozen Boy Wonder, and how long it would take to defrost the kid. Red X couldn't possibly use the machine; he had no idea how to. And it wasn't like Professor Chang was going to help Red X by doing it for him. The Professor made it perfectly clear how much he hated Red X, and that simply ate Red X up on the inside. Really.

It was odd too. Robin wasn't aware of the old man at all. But he had noticed Red X. Ever since their few incidents together; fighting against Chang and Ding Dong Daddy, Robin had always been interested in the thief. Honestly, Red X wasn't a bad villain. For one thing, he was very good at stealing so he wasn't bad in the sense of horrible at doing his job. But he also wasn't a very mean, evil-doing villain since he was constantly fighting alongside Robin and beating other villains. That was why most of the Brotherhood was wary of him.

Robin had looked right at Red X before he was frozen. He saw that Red X had his arms crossed and, even though he couldn't see through the mask, looked pretty ticked off. The other villains were jumping up and down, clapping, and screaming. Then Robin's world froze.

* * *

Robin and Red X had been living their normal lives ever since they had gotten back from the Brotherhood of Evil. Slade hadn't made any attempt to contact Robin and Red X had gone back to stealing the moment he was aware that the large group of fighting teenagers was back down to five members. Nothing had changed between them or for their lives.

Except during the final battle, Red X had turned sides at the last minute and Robin had watched as the thief had taken down one of their own. Robin got an alert that Red X had broken into a jewelry store and went alone to catch the thief. He stood behind Red X, in the shadows, and quietly watched the thief work for a moment before he decided to speak up. "So, why'd you help us?" Red X jumped and quickly turned around, a weapon aimed and up in the air.

Red X physically relaxed when he saw that it was Robin and only Robin. The weapon melted back into his glove. "Come on, kid, I know you're Batman's child and all, but pull that stunt on me again and you'll have to take me to the emergency room." Red X patted his chest as he held tightly onto his bag of stolen jewels. "Talk about a sneaky heart attack."

"You took down one of the Brotherhood members, why?" Robin asked again, more specifically, as he ignored the sarcastic boy's first statement. "Were you trying to redeem yourself again?" Robin knew that Red X had a conscious, unlike certain villains that Robin didn't want to think about.

"Did you ever consider that he just owed me money?" Red X asked and Robin looked at him pointedly. The thief sighed and placed his hands on his hips, the bag of jewels jingling against him. "Look, I didn't even want into that stupid club in the first place, truthfully. They threatened most of the people into either joining or being destroyed and I really didn't like option two. Besides, all I did for them was steal a bit here and there, and I never mind that." Even with the mask on, Robin could tell that Red X was smirking.

"You'd rather be on the winning side even if you know that they're wrong and immoral?" Robin asked as he finally stopped leaning on the glass display case and stood up straight.

Red X shook his head. "I knew you and your team would be able to stop them so I wasn't too worried. Though I was surprised to see all your new recruits, I didn't even know that you were taking on anymore goodie-two-shoes."

"Interested in joining?" Robin asked in all seriousness. "You've done some bad things, Red X, but you could easily make up for them."

"I've done what I have to in order to survive and I'm not interested in being on any team if I have to play by society's rules." Red X paused for a moment. "Though you could give me a couple of those new Titan's phone numbers, I'd appreciate that, kid." Red X growled seductively and Robin couldn't help himself as he smiled and softly chuckled.

"I don't think you're their type, Red X." Robin pulled out his staff and released it to its full length. Just because they were talking like they were friends didn't mean that Red X could expect Robin to just let him walk out of there with those jewels.

Red X seemed to think differently though as he ignored the boy's weapon and kept right on talking. "Alright, then how about you just give me your number, Boy Wonder? I know a nice place downtown that I'm sure you'd appreciate." Red X slid back into a defensive position and Robin smirked. The Joker often used that technique on Batman; he knew how to deal with a foe suddenly hitting on him.

"Sorry, X, it would never work out between us. We're just too different. Though I'd love to hear about this place you're thinking of." Batman had told Robin of two different ways to deal with a villain when they started to try to use the tactic of distracting you with different pet names and acting like they wanted to date you; either just play along or answer with fists. Batman always chose to ignore them, which was an option Robin didn't get, but he figured Red X would appreciate the acting role more than the fists anyway.

"I was thinking of my apartment; I'd make it so you'd love it there and feel right at home. Besides, I've thought this all out before and we could make it work if you're willing to give it a shot." Robin wasn't expecting that, though it was a very good line.

"You've really thought this all out?" Robin blinked in confusion for a moment but shook his head. He slid into an attacking stance and figured that Red X just had to be a really good actor.

"Of course, I'm a thief, kid, and to pull off a job you have to think everything through beforehand. Stealing your heart has got to be the biggest job of the century and worth every working minute." Red X tied the bag of jewels onto his new belt and Robin blushed as he realized that Red X couldn't be that good of an actor or else he'd be on stages instead of in stores after hours.

"I…I don't know what to say, Red X, I really never had this happen to me before." Robin stood up from his positioned and Red X loosened as well. Robin rubbed his neck uncomfortably. "Listen, are you kidding around with me or what? Because if you are just kidding with me then you really should try out for the city's plays; you'd be a really convincing actor."

"No thanks, kid, I have no pleasure in memorizing lines. Besides, I'm not kidding." Red X folded his arms over his chest. "Haven't you ever thought about why I took your costume, kid? It's because I knew it was the only way to get closer to you." Robin's blush increased as his heart pounded quickly in his chest. He thanked the moon for not lighting the dark sky that night to reveal his startled face. "Well," Red X continued, "That and because it makes stealing things so much easier."

"I'd say I'm not gay to end this, but my first boyfriend would beg to differ." Robin stated as he awkwardly rubbed his arm. He didn't know why he just mentioned his first boyfriend. No one knew about that except for Raven and, well, Slade.

"Just give me a shot then. Let me explain how we can work this all out so I can continue to steal and you can continue to try and stop me." Red X offered and Robin shook his head.

"I don't know about this, Red X, the last guy I dated…" Robin drifted off and when it became clear to Red X that he wasn't going to pick up where he stopped, he filled the silence.

"Date me for a month, just one month, and if I'm not your type then you can dump my ass right back out on the streets." Red X strode forward and Robin tensed as he gripped his bo-staff tightly, expecting any type of attack. Red X held his hands up in front of himself to show the Boy Wonder that he meant no harm. "I'd make the month worth it." Red X whispered promisingly as he leaned close to Robin's ear.

Robin shivered as the hot breath hit his cold skin. "Let me hear your offer first, and then we'll go from there."

"It's simple really," Red X backed a step away to give Robin some space and not make him feel uncomfortable. A crowded bird sometimes felt the need to flee and he finally had the little birdie that he'd been chasing after exactly where he wanted it.

"We'll keep it a secret, as I'm sure you're not totally out of the closet to your team," Robin nodded, for Red X was correct. None of the Titans, aside from Raven, knew that he had ever had a boyfriend or that he was even into guys. Starfire was still trying to get him to be her boyfriend and he didn't know why he flirted back but he felt bad since he was truly just not interested in her. "And when I steal something you have ten blocks to catch me. If you do catch me, then I return the items, but if not, then I get to keep the items.

"After our little chase down, then we can just hang out afterwards. You can come back to my apartment, we can go to the docks, or we could even spar if that's your idea of a date." Red X suggested and Robin smiled.

"That actually doesn't sound too bad." Robin bit his lower lip as he began to think deeply. Red X smiled behind his mask and decided to kick the deal up.

"And if after a month of dating me, if you decide to keep dating me, then we can move into kissing and other things." Robin blushed again and at that close of a distance Red X actually saw it. "I only kiss when I'm in an official couple; those are my morals."

"Those are good morals and my morals are to not force people into anything that they don't want to do. I promise that I won't pressure you into anything." Robin swore and Red X chuckled.

"It's only for the first month, then, if you decide that you want to make it official, I'll be all over you, kid. But don't worry; I can wait for all that big stuff and I won't rush you into it either, unless you want me to." Robin blushed some more and Red X decided that Robin was cute when he blushed. "You're even cuter when you blush. And once we get really comfortable with each other, then we'll change the rules a bit."

"What do you mean?" Robin asked as he shrunk his bo-staff again. He was going to be chasing Red X from now on, it seemed, and chasing meant speed and hand-to-hand fights. Besides, the bo-staff wasn't really helpful for leaping from building to building or fighting in a fragile jewelry store anyways.

"I mean that after some time, we can change it so when you catch me I return the goods and you can get top that night. Then on the nights that I win, I get to keep whatever and I get to top you." Red X held out his hand as Robin grew bright red. "So, do we have a deal with all of this?"

"I don't feel right about this." Robin admitted and Red X frowned behind his mask. "I mean, it's not right for me to let you keep those stolen items."

Red X chuckled, "You would be concerned about that little detail. Think of it this way, I would be able to escape from you because I always do anyway, but now we have a restriction to how far before we stop our little cat and mouse game so you have more of a chance to catch me. Besides, I would be taking the items, not you. So don't worry about that, just tell me if you're in or out."

Robin bit his lower lip one more time and then nodded his head as he shook Red's offered hand. "It's a deal; one month." He released Red's hand and smirked. "Now start running because I want to go to the beach before I have to get back to the tower."

"I think I'm in love." And then Red X jumped up through the same air vent he had sneaked into and the chase was on.

* * *

**A.N.** And so begins a new era for our little bird with his theif.


	11. Chapter 11

**Title: **A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating: M **throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Past Sladin with RobinRed X  
**Chapter Summary:** Robin is finally starting to move on.

**Author's Note:** Let's see, I think this is how to update, I'm not too sure anymore since it's been a while from my last upload. Seriously, I'm upset at myself because I will *not* drop this fandom! I have too many unfinished ideas/fics/challenges to do, darn it!

* * *

**Choices**

A month had passed and Robin and Red X had been secretly dating. They spent five nights a week together, one night out of those five started out with Red X breaking into a store. Sometimes the other Titans tagged along with Robin when he went off to capture the thief but they never succeed and then Robin claimed to go sulk in his room when he truthfully went back out to meet his sudo-boyfriend.

Red X would meet up with him on the rooftops some nights and they'd talk while running from one to another, the wind hitting their faces and making them both more energetic with adrenaline. Other nights they'd be in the more secluded areas of the park and sit on a bench to talk. On a bad day for Robin, which had only happened twice, Red X would actually spar with him down on the beach. The sand made them both slower but Red X could still block and defend himself just fine from Robin's anger.

Robin never told Red X why he was so angry on those nights and Red never tried to pry the information out of him. He told Robin he was there for him if he ever wanted to talk. It was what Robin really needed.

Back at the same jewelry store from when Red X had first told of his proposal, Red X sat on top of a display case and waited patiently for Robin to show up. "Why are you back here, Red X?" As Red X jumped off of the case he looked at his boyfriend, he held his chest dramatically again.

"What did I tell you about causing me a heart attack?" Red X calmed his shocked heart down and Robin smiled at the antics that he had grown to be very fond of. "But the reason I came back here is because it's decision time, kid. It's been a month, Robin, so am I single again or do I get my first kiss tonight?"

"You've never been kissed before?" Robin asked, disbelievingly. "I don't recall you ever telling me that little factor."

"I've been kissed before, three girlfriends and one boyfriend, remember? But I meant my first kiss with you. And don't change the subject tonight. Do you want to become official or not?" Red X asked as he took a deep breath and held it, waiting for Robin's decision.

"Well," Robin walked around the display cases in the store. "I do really like you, Red X, and I have enjoyed this past month. I've had more fun with you then I've had in a long time and it's been nice getting to know you."

Red X smiled behind his mask as he folded his hands across his chest. "And?" he tempted, trying not to appear as anxious as he was.

"And I'm sorry, but I don't think I can continue to date you." Robin frowned and Red X felt like his heart was really about to have that attack then.

"What, why not? If you like me and you've had fun then what's the problem? The Titans aren't starting to catch on or anything, are they?" Red X asked as he frantically started to think of what could be wrong. Did his breath smell?

"It's nothing like that but it's just that my first boyfriend is back in town." Robin sighed, and crossed his arms over his chest defensively. "That's why I was so upset last Wednesday; he had tried to call me." Robin stared down at his feet, clouded in the shadows of the night. "If he were to find out about you…" Robin trailed off and Red X growled as he moved forward and gripped Robin's shoulders, getting Robin's attention.

"You're always doing this. You always start saying something about your first boyfriend and then not finishing the damn sentence. All that I've learned about the guy is that because of him you feel like you can't do certain things and he's the reason why you're so uncertain about yourself now. Sure, you never came straight out and told me that, but I've been listening and I was able to put two and two together." Red X rubbed Robin's shoulders comfortingly. "You haven't even told me who he is so I can go beat him up." Red X was sick of hearing a little about Robin's ex and yet not learning a thing about the guy. If the creep was the reason why they couldn't be together then he definitely had to find out why and would deserve to know too.

Robin looked at Red and sighed, "Trust me, Red; you wouldn't want to try and beat up Slade." Robin didn't look Red X in the eyes as he felt the other boy freeze at hearing the name. Red's hands fell away from Robin's shoulders and landed back at his sides.

"No way," Red X finally whispered. "You were dating Slade?" Robin hesitantly nodded. "When and for how long?"

"About a few months after I first moved to Jump; it was awkward at first but I really took a liking to him. But then he started to get possessive and get demanding that I sneak away from the Tower more and that I should just move in with him altogether. I explained to him why I couldn't and…" Robin stopped himself again and Red X sighed.

"Come on, kid, you were doing really well there. Now keep it up, I think I have a right to know if it's the reason why I can't be with you." Red X urged as he placed a hand on Robin's shoulder again and gave Robin a slight squeeze to try to encourage him to continue as well as comfort him.

"Well, I told him that I couldn't move in with him and he got really angry." Robin shuddered as he remembered the night long ago. "It was the first night that he had ever got angry with me and he, well, stuff happened that I'd rather not like to talk about."

Red X's eyes narrowed as he watched Robin. The proud leader of the Titans, the hero he had fallen hard for; he looked like a lost, scared kid. Red X normally tried not to act on impulses, they often got him in trouble, but he couldn't help but just reach out and pull Robin into a hug.

Robin tensed around Red for a moment. Finally though, he brought his hands up and wrapped them around Red's frame. He felt so safe in the teenager's arms. He felt warm and cared for and he never wanted the hug to end. Robin rested his head on Red's shoulder, it was the perfect height.

"You don't have to say anything more if you don't want to." Red X whispered against his hair. "I understand," Robin felt like Red X really did. It made him want to trust him, to open up to him.

"I tried to break up with him that night." Robin continued. "He got really, really angry and started yelling and screaming and I got scared." Red X didn't blame Robin. Word on the street was that Slade was a very terrifying guy, just standing in his presence gave most of the guys Red X knew the chills.

"I tried to leave then but he wouldn't let me. He kept screaming that our relationship ended when he decided it did, that I was his boyfriend, like I belonged to him or something." Robin bit his lip nervously. "Then when I tried to fight back against him, I got knocked out. When I woke up, I was naked in his bedroom and he was straddling me. I freaked out and tried to get away but he just held me down and he…" Robin trailed off again as tears started to slide down from behind his mask. He pressed his face into the crook of Red's neck.

Red tightened his hold around Robin's shaking body and rubbed his hand up and down Robin's back. Robin didn't have to finish his story anymore, it was obvious enough to Red X what had happened and he would understand if Robin didn't feel ready to start dating someone after such an incident.

But Robin reined his tears back and continued. He couldn't stop now that his pain had finally had an outlet. "And he didn't even say anything after he did it." Robin continued as he gripped Red X tightly, as though his emotions would sweep him away if he didn't have something sturdy to cling to. "He simply got dressed again and threw my clothes at me as I lay crying on his bed. I got dressed and walked out and he didn't even pay attention to me as he worked on some device. I started heading back to the tower and all he said was that he expected to see me the next night."

"Don't tell me you went back the next night." Red X asked as he slowly slid down to the floor and brought Robin down as well, onto his lap. He loosened his hold to show that Robin could move away if he wanted to. Robin wrapped his arms around Red's neck and shifted in his lap to a more comfortable position.

"Of course I didn't." Robin continued to rest his head on Red X's shoulder but he had stopped crying. "I didn't want to see him ever again but then, probably because I didn't show up, he threatened Jump with a chronoton detonator."

"No way!" Red X shouted, shocked. "Um, what's a chronoton detonator?" Red X asked and Robin laughed lightly. Red X had learned over the month that he loved Robin's laugh more than anything and he was glad that he could get him to laugh at such a time.

"Beast Boy said something similar to that. Basically, it stops time permanently and could easily have been used to freeze all of downtown forever. But it turned out to be a fake. I went to Slade's headquarters by myself, because I knew where it was, while the others went after the devise before we figured out that it was a fake. Slade explained to me how it was simply a decoy and had lodged probes into all of my friends' bloodstreams. Then he threatened that I was to become his apprentice, never speak to my friends again, and do everything he said or else he'd kill them from the inside out, using the probes." Red X started to rub circles into Robin's back again and Robin nuzzled his head against Red X's neck.

"That guys an ass." Red X stated.

"That's putting it lightly because I think he's a crazy ass at the very least. While I was there, he kept acting like he did when we had started dating. And he always seemed confused when I got mad at him, like he didn't understand why I was made about him raping me and threatening my friends. I think he was bipolar or something." Robin's voice filled up with hate and Red X continued to try to soothe him.

"Every day he trained me and then at night he tried to act like my lover. I mean, our beginning relationship had that idea; during the day we were arch foes and then at night we were a couple. But I was done with that the night I tried to break up with him. I figured that he hadn't accepted my breakup and that he probably thought nothing of the," Robin swallowed and licked his lips, "Rape. I learned that I was right.

"At night he treated me like we were still dating, we'd watch movies and he'd make small talk like we used to, but then he'd always take me into his bedroom and when I didn't do what he wanted, I'd be treated like the apprentice again and get my friends' lives held against me. It was the worst week of my life." Robin sighed. "And then, he returned with Terra. He was threatening Titan's Tower with these giant worms and I got thrown into a fight with him"

"Terra was that rock girl that Beast Boy liked, right? The one that was working for Slade and betrayed you guys but saved the city in the end?" Red X asked as he tried to refresh his memory.

"Yeah, that's her. I got separated from her and Raven and Slade got me in an elevator. We had started off fighting and I was really glad, but then the elevator had stopped for a moment and I had stumbled into him. He just grabbed me and told me how much he missed me. Terra and Raven were right there and he hadn't cared in the least if they overheard anything." Robin shifted in Red X's lap and rested his head on the other boy's chest instead.

He continued, "Slade called me on my communicator once she betrayed us. He started talking about how he forgave me for our last fight and how he wanted to see me again. I kept telling him that we were through but he ignored me. So I hung up on him and he called back and threatened that if I hung up on him again that I'd regret it."

"So, what did you do? You didn't stay on the phone with that bastard, did you?" Red X asked as he listened intently to Robin's tale. He was starting to understand so much.

"No, I hung up again and I didn't pick up when he called me back. But the next day," Robin sighed at the memory. "He had Terra take down the Titans and me. But then we got back together and took the city back from their control. Then I didn't see him for quite a while." Robin remained quiet for a few moments, indicating that he was done with his story for the night. Red X could tell there was more to Robin's story but he had shared enough for one night. He actually thought very highly of Robin for opening up so much.

Red X hesitated but he really did want to know so he asked, "How many times did that bastard rape you?" Red X felt himself growing really angry just thinking about it. Multiple rape to the same poor kid that was huddled in his lap, looking the age he really was; Slade was obviously a monster.

"Over the course of my apprenticeship and counting the first time it comes to a total of eight times. All of them, I can assure you, he probably thought weren't rape." Robin bit his lip again.

"Then remind me to kick him in the balls eight times if I ever meet him." Red X spoke and Robin frowned and stood suddenly. The fleeting of Robin's body heat against Red made him shiver. "What's wrong?" He asked as he looked up at Robin.

"Don't act like this is a joke, Red, please, don't." Robin stared moodily out of the jewelry store's window.

Red X frowned and stood up. "Sorry, Robin, it's just a part of how I handle things. If I joke about them, then it doesn't seem so bad and I can handle it better." Red X shrugged. "It's just something I do but I promise you that I'm taking everything you said seriously and I'm so sorry for what happened to you. No one deserves to be treated in such a way. Especially not you," Red X reached out and cupped Robin's cheek gently. "If you don't want to date me, I'd understand. But I want you to know that if we would go out, I'd never pressure you into anything. We could be in the middle of something, you could tell me to stop, and I would. Trust me, I'd stop." Red X allowed his hand to fall back at his side. "Besides, you could always beat me up if I didn't stop," he shrugged, "Doesn't matter that you're younger than me; you are stronger than me still."

Robin allowed a corned of his mouth to quirk up in a half smile. "You'd really let me say that our relationship is over and just let me walk away now?"  
"Of course," Red X made a large plastic 'x' out of his gloves and held it over his chest. "Cross my heart and hope to die." Robin shook his head at the silly gesture and Red X made the 'x' disappear. "Although, then you'd have to deal with all the sexual tension between us the next time I'm out stealing something. Plus, you'd have to keep in mind that while we battled, I'd probably be coping feels like crazy."

Robin chuckled and shook his head. He sobered up a little and stared intently at Red X, as though his choice would be written on the criminal. "Can I have a little more time to think about this?"

"Sure," Red X nodded. "I'll wait for your decision."

* * *

"So, did you make up your mind now?" Red X asked for the third time in the past ten minutes. Robin sighed from his sitting position on the roof and threw a half-hearted glare in the thief's direction.

"You know, I thought you said that you'd wait for me to decide." Robin reminded, only mildly irritated.

"Yeah, and I did wait. I waited for, like, two hours. Now my patience is all run up and I want to know if I can go home and mark my calendar with a heart of a big red 'x'." Red X chuckled and Robin rolled his eyes behind his mask.

"You are such a loser," Robin murmured and looked out across the city. He loved sitting on Wayne Enterprises, the bright letters illuminated behind him. The tower always helped any nostalgia that he had plus it was one of the tallest buildings in Jump, allowing him a gorgeous view of the rest of the city. "But I suppose you're my loser now." Robin smirked and looked at Red out of the corner of his eye.

Red X paused as he tried to balance on the edge of the roof. The thief looked at Robin and slipped, almost falling over the side of the building. Luckily he leaned his weight back in time to fall on his rump on the building beside Robin. "So we're official now?" He asked excitedly.

Robin nodded and Red X jumped and pumped his fists wildly in the air. "Yes! Score," he turned to the city and shouted obnoxiously. "Take that everyone single in Jump City; the Boy Wonder is off limits!"

Robin chuckled and watched as Red X paraded around the rooftop victoriously. He really hoped he wasn't making a mistake.

* * *

"Wow," Robin awed as he looked around Red's apartment. "You have a really nice place here. But I suppose you do have enough stolen money to afford this." Robin scowled as Red X patted the bag hanging off of his belt, the jewels inside jiggling around.

"Don't be such a sore loser. Now wait out here for a moment." Red X rushed off further into the apartment and Robin began to look around the apartment. There was an open kitchen, a welcome room that merged into the living room, a bathroom, and apparently Red's room. Not bad, for someone living on their own at their age—even if Red X was a year older than Robin. It was very large considering there was only one person living in it.

"Alright," Red X opened a door and mentioned for Robin to come closer. "My room is all clear and Robin prepared."

"Hiding your future theft plans?" Robin asked as he walked across the apartment, brushing his gloved hand across the back of the couch on his way to Red's room.

"Nah, I was hiding my porn and underwear. I don't want you getting too excited for your first time in my room." Red X smirked behind his mask as Robin blushed. "Besides, this is just our first official date night. There's no need to rush."

"This is our first? Then what were all the dates before that?" Robin asked as Red blocked his entrance into the room.

"Unofficial, very nice dates," Red replied cheekily and moved aside, allowing Robin entrance.

Robin strode passed him into Red's room and stared in awe once again. "Nice room." He commented as he viewed the different posters of various bands hanging on the walls. There were glow-in-the-dark stars hanging off of the ceiling, a lava lamp, a bean bag chair in a corner, and king sized bed. He ignored the pillows on the bed, pushed to the bottom of the bed. He also pretended not to see the pile of assorted clothes seeping out of the closet, the dresser that drawers didn't close, and the desk scattered with different papers. He would never let his room look so bad, especially on the night that his boyfriend was finally trusted enough to come to his house.

"Really, you like it? That surprises me; your room is so very plain and tidy. I thought for sure you'd hate my cluttered room." Red X sat down on the edge of his bed and patted beside himself in an offer to Robin.

Taking the offer and moving next to Red, Robin raised a brow as he stared at the thief. "And how do you know what my room looks like?"

"Come now, kid, I'm a thief. Getting in and out of tightly locked places undetected is my job." Red X smirked behind his mask.

"How many times have you been in the Tower?" Robin asked as he folded his arms over his chest.

Red X sighed. "Only once and it was when I stole the suit. That Cyborg sure does know how to up a protective, hack-free computer system around that tower. But I did peak into your room. Seriously, how could I not? I had the chance to see how the other half lives and I just had to see. Turns out the other half is really clean and you could bounce a quarter on his neatly made bed."

Robin smirked. "Well, I just haven't really felt like decorating it. Beast Boy and Cyborg have different things hung around their room and stuff." He shrugged, "But I'm surprised that you actually make your bed. I suppose you'd have to if you wanted to successfully hide your porn under your mattress." Robin chuckled as he leaned back on the bed. "Very original hiding spot, might I add."  
"And where do you hide your porn, kid; in that fancy briefcase of yours?" Red X asked as he leaned back on his side and looked at Robin.

"Of course not," he paused, "Do you really think I have porn?" Robin asked as he turned his head to look at Red. "Your bed's really comfortable."

"I guess not; Batman probably confiscated anything good that you got. I mean, how could you hide stuff from the number one detective?" Red removed his glove and ran his fingers through Robin's hair. Robin closed his eyes happily. He liked the feeling of the other boy's hand playing with his hair like that. "But really, what do you keep in that briefcase?" Red X asked as his curiosity got the better of him.

Smirking, Robin turned on his side to face Red X. "Maybe I'll show you one day." Robin covered his mouth as he yawned and he stretched out a bit as he rolled back over onto his back. "I think I might fall asleep like this."

"Go ahead, there's plenty of room. But do be warned that you'll wake up with sharpie all over your face." Red X grinned behind his mask.

"Thanks for the warning." Robin rolled his eyes behind his mask. "But I did notice that you have a really large bed. Why?" Robin asked skeptically.

"I like to stretch out. Just like this," Red X faked a yawn and stretched his arms out into the air and then flopped himself over the Boy Wonder. His head resting on his chest as his arms continued to stretch out to his pillow and his feet to his headboard.

"Thanks for that demonstration, Red." Robin shifted underneath the boy. "You know, your bed may be comfy but you're really not." Robin poked at Red's side until the boy sat up again.

"Fine, if you don't want me lying on top of you like that then get off my bed." Red X shoved Robin to the floor and the teen hero fell gracelessly, not expecting the sudden push.

"Greedy much?" Robin asked, just a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"I'm a thief, kid, of course I am." Red settled himself back down on his bed and watched Robin sigh and lay out on the floor.

Robin's foot went under Red's bed and hit something hard. Looking at what he had hit, Robin saw an odd shaped box under the bed. "What's this?" He asked Red as he pulled it out. It was a guitar case. "You play guitar?" Robin smirked as Red nodded lazily. "So, how easy is it for you to get girls?"

Red laughed a bit as he sat up. "Too easy," He leaned against the wall his bed was pushed up against and briefly looked out the lonely window over his desk. "That's why I started going after guys."

Robin shook his head; that was too expected; everyone knew Red X liked a challenge. "What songs can you play?"

"Not much really; I taught myself since I couldn't afford lessons as a kid. But I can play 'Smells like Teen Spirit,' because every musician needs to know it, and a few other songs that I found the acoustic notes off of the internet for." Red X stretched out on his bed once more and Robin opened the case to see the instrument lying peacefully in its carrier.

In the top level of the case, papers stuck out of a made-in pocket. One of the papers caught Robin's attention and he pulled it out of the pocket to see it better. "What's this 'Robin, Boy Wonder' song?" He asked and the next thing he knew was that the thief was jumping him.

Pinning Robin to the floor, Red took the paper out of the other's hand. Beneath his mask he was blushing. "Don't look at that."

"Are you writing a song about me?" Robin smiled and wrapped his arms around Red's neck. "That's sweet. I want to hear it when you're done writing it."

"I am done writing it, but it's not perfect yet so you'll have to wait to hear it. Besides, you're quite an inspiration, kid; I couldn't believe there wasn't a song written about you yet." Red X pulled away from the boy and tucked the music sheet carefully back into the pocket.

"Come on, Red, if it's done then I want to hear you sing it." Robin sat up and poked Red in the side again. Red looked over his shoulder and glared as much as he could in his mask. "Please?" another poke in the side and a sweet, pleading expression.

Sighing, Red X took out his guitar and sat on his bed. "Fine, I'll sing, but not that, not yet. It has to be perfect the first time you hear it. For now, I'll sing you 'Broken Heart' by Dashboard Confessionals because it's one of the shortest songs that I memorized. But only if you don't ask me to sing again; musicians only like to sing when they're in the mood to do so." Red tuned his guitar as he talked; turning the knobs at the top of the instrument as he experimentally strummed the tight strings.

Robin sat up straighter and smirked. "Since when do you consider yourself a musician?" He asked as Red X finished tuning and began to warm up his hands a bit by shaking them in the air wildly.

"Since I decided I wanted to be one. You have to look to the future if you want to live in it." He removed his gloves; gloves and strings didn't mix well with him.

"That's actually philosophical, Red. I must be rubbing off on you." Robin brought his knees up to his chest and leaned his chin on them as he wrapped his arms tightly around his legs.

"I'll make sure I take more showers from now on." Red replied as he cleared his throat and began to play. His voice was low and soothing as he hit all of the right notes. Robin watched in awe as Red seemed to drift off to another world while he played; as if the song was coming straight from his heart. Robin became entranced and couldn't help but be moved by the passion in which Red sang the song with.

Striking the final string, Red looked back at Robin in silence. In his opinion, that was the best he had ever done and he was glad; he hoped Robin was impressed. "Can I see your guitar?" Was the first thing Robin said and X felt a little hurt.

Red X nodded nonetheless and passed the boy his instrument. Robin looked at it, kissed the back of the neck of it, and then replaced it into its case carefully, as though it was blessed. Looking at Red X with a genuine smile, Robin moved toward the boy and sat down on his lap, facing Red, as he pushed down the collar of the suit.

"Kid?" Red's voice was low, almost as low as it was when he sang, when he asked the question.

"I need to kiss you right now." Robin revealed Red's neck and lightly planted a kiss. "That was so beautiful, Red." Another kiss was delivered to the white skin, a bit longer and with added passion. "It seemed like you sang it from your very soul." Then Robin kissed Red deeply, seeping the passion he felt radiate from the song back into the one who had played it. "So very beautiful,"

"Damn, Robin, if you had told me that music turned you on then I would have started signing for you back when we first started out." Red smiled behind his mask and brought his bare hands up to trace Robin's cheek. "And if you need to kiss me, then do it."

Robin removed his lips from Red's newly marked neck and stared into the eyes of the mask. "You mean, remove your mask?" Red nodded and Robin gulped. "You know that I'll be tempted to look your face up in my files. I could get your name and background."

"Yeah but my name's common as hell." Red X rubbed Robin's jaw line and watched as the boy leaned into the touch.

"Oh?" Robin inquired.

"Jones,"

"Oh."

Red chuckled. "Yeah and my face is just another one in the crowd. Besides, I was planning on telling you my little life story sooner or later, if you were interested at all; you did tell me some of yours, and a thief hates to be in anyone's debt because that means they didn't get away cleanly." Red leaned closer to Robin. "So go ahead, remove my mask. I'm not going to ask you to do the same thing, so don't worry; your identity can still be secret. And even if I did see your eyes, I doubt I could ever figure out your name."

Robin hesitated as he brought his hands to Red's mask. "I want to know about the boy behind the mask." He took a deep breath as he smiled. "And I want you to meet the boy under mine." Red X's hands flew up to the corners of Robin's mask.

"On three?" Red asked.

"One," Robin began to count.

"Two," Red X added.

"Three," they breathed in unison as both of their masks were removed.

"Holy shit," Red X cupped Robin's face. "Why would you hide such baby blues? Damn it, Robin, you could get fucking Brad Pitt with these eyes." Red X took a deep breath to collect himself. "I mean, if you wanted him."

"I think he's straight." Robin grinned as he ran his hands through Red's short red hair. He found it insanely ironic that the thief was a red head with green, envious eyes.

"Yeah, but one look at these orbs, and he'd totally want into your pants." Red really couldn't get over how much emotion Robin held in his eyes.

"And does that imply that you currently want into my pants?" Robin asked.

"Kid, I'm already wearing your pants." Red X smirked and Robin smirked back, glad to finally be able to see such an expression. Red X had dimples.

"Your eyes fit you well; green with envy. Makes sense for a thief to be envious of everything and want to steal everything." Robin leaned closer to Red X and his eyes closed shut as Red leaned closer as well and sealed the last space between them. Their lips pressed lightly together and Red X opened his lips a bit to press Robin's upper lip in-between his own.

Red X pulled away to breathe against Robin's lips. "I don't always have to steal. Sometimes, what I want, wants me as well." Red pulled Robin into another kiss and parted the boy's mouth.

When Red's tongue touched Robin's he couldn't hold in his moan. The kiss was very wet which somehow made it incredibly hot. The feel of a slick organ pressing lightly against Robin's own, twining the tip and then running across the roof of Robin's mouth made the boy shiver. He pulled back and bumped his forehead against Red's as he panted for breath.

"Wow," Robin smiled sheepishly as Red X chuckled. He knew he hadn't made the wrong choice after all.

* * *

**A.N.** Do you know how many songs there are about Superman? There's even songs about Flash, Batman, and Casey Jones from TMNT! Is there a Robin Boy Wonder song? Not yet, but Red's fixing that problem. ;P


	12. Chapter 12

**Title:** A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating:** M throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Past Sladin with RobinRed X  
**Chapter Summary:** Moments between Red X and Robin as their life continues over a year.

**Author's Note: **So, two months is not that bad for an update, right? *crickets chirp* Right, I'll try and be faster. Um, I did write some Sladin drabbles on my livejournal if anyone wants to read those. Or you can just wait until I finish updating my very own fanfiction website!~ I have all my TMNT fics up already, (stupid main fandom, right?) but I swear this is my second fandom so it's next! Link is in my bio and what not. Oh and all the fluff in this chapter? Don't worry, the angst will be back next chapter.

* * *

**Bits and Pieces**

Robin sighed happily as he spread his arms and legs out on his bed. He had just had another date with Red X at his apartment. They had played videogames and Robin had beaten the pants off of Red X, but had insisted Red X keep his pants on. All the times he had been challenged to video game tournaments by Cyborg and Beast Boy really paid off.

As the winner, Robin had won one kiss after another. Every time Red X lifted his mask off and kissed Robin, it made him smile. Taking off his mask represented a lot to Robin. It signified the trust that Red X has in him and showed Robin that he could trust Red as well. Trust was a perfect beginning for a good relationship.

But it also meant more. It meant that Robin could truly be who he was around Red. He didn't need to hide behind his mask; he could be Dick Grayson. Of course, he wasn't ready to give Red a name just yet. Although, Red had trusted him with his last name. Red X Jones; well, it was a start.

Red X Jones with the envious green eyes, Robin smiled as he thought about his boyfriend. He honestly felt really good about this relationship already.

But he had felt good about his relationship with Slade as well and that hadn't turned out well. Was he putting too much trust into Red already? Would Red X just throw that trust right back into his face like Slade had? Maybe he did trust strangers too easily.

Robin frowned, his good mood instantly gone due to his own thoughts. He sighed and moved to sit on the edge of his bed. He looked out his windows at the cloudless night sky. The moon was low and almost ready to trade places with the sun in the sky.

"Do I ruin my own relationships by being too open too quick?" Robin asked himself aloud. Would he make the same mistakes with Red as he had with Slade? He hoped not. Things were different with Red already. But Red X was a villain still and villains couldn't truly be trusted.

Robin stood from his bed and paced his room, walking through the moonlight paneling in from his windows. He hated dealing with such inner turmoil. Why couldn't thoughts be simpler? Why couldn't he just deal with one emotion after another? Why weren't emotional pains easier to handle, like physical pains were?

As though in a trance, Robin suddenly stopped still in the middle of his room. He took out a bird-a-rang from his belt and flipped the sharp edges out. He stared at his weapon and took off his left glove. He stared at his white, creamy skin. Due to the protection from his gloves, he didn't have any scars or marks on his forearms. He ran the smooth weapon against his skin, sending chills up his spines as the cool material touched his bare skin.

With a careful hand, Robin slowly turned the weapon and ran the sharp edge into his skin. He cut deep, just deep enough to scar, as he ran the weapon in a straight line across his arm; he didn't want to kill himself, he just wanted to draw blood. Robin pulled the weapon away from his skin and stared at the red line as his blood slowly bubbled up to the surface of the new cut.

Robin drew a matching line from the other side of his arm, making a nice red 'x' design in his arm. He hissed as he made the marks intersect. Robin released the breath he had subconsciously held during his odd state of mind and stared at the new cuts in his arm. He frowned and licked his suddenly dry lips.

"Let that be a reminder," he told himself, trying to make sense of the situation. "I can't be too trusting. Love can hurt." He nodded and went into the bathroom. He cleaned off his bird-a-rang and pocketed the weapon again.

Robin dabbed at the new cuts on his arm and decided that they wouldn't scar. He hadn't cut that deep. But they would mark his skin for a very long time. He frowned at his marked wrist and wrapped it carefully, then slid his glove back on.

He'd been up too long. With a blank mind, Robin went back to bed and rested.

* * *

"I win again," Red X grinned triumphantly as he held up the bag of stolen goods. Robin frowned and stared at the thief.

"Why did you even steal that, of all things?" Robin asked as he jumped over the gap between the rooftops and landed beside Red. "Honestly, couldn't you just buy your own popcorn or, I don't know, pay for it?"

"Movie popcorn is so much better than that stuff in stores." Red X remarked as he opened the bag and inhaled the salty, buttery aroma. "Besides, food always tastes better after you worked hard to get it."

"Stealing isn't hard work." Robin crossed his arms over his chest.

"No, stealing is hard, sometimes. But it's not honest work, I'll give you that." Red X shrugged his shoulders. "But who cares. Come on, let's go back to my place and watch a movie." He suggested, holding out his elbow invitingly.

Robin smiled and shook his head as he linked arms with Red and joined him in sprinting over the last few rooftops until they arrived at Red's apartment. They slipped in through the window and Red X bounded over to his leather couch and kicked off his shoes. "Come make yourself comfy." Red X pulled off his mask and placed the bag of popcorn on the table in front of the couch. "I'll grab the drinks."

"What do you have?" Robin asked.

"Booze and wine, take your pick." Red grinned and took off his gloves and cape, throwing them onto his kitchen counter.

"Yeah, I'll settle for a Coke, thanks." Robin smiled as he removed his own boots and cape. He folded his cape and placed it on his boots.

Red jumped over the couch and landed next to Robin. "A coke, monsieur," Red handed him the can and Robin took it, planting a kiss on Red's cheek.

"Thanks," he tapped the top and popped open the tab, listening to the hissing die down. Robin took a long sip and exhaled contentedly as Red grabbed the remote off of the table and aimed it at the large television screen. The screen flickered to life and the movie instantly started to play due to Red preparing the DVD beforehand. "What movie are we watching?" Robin asked, feeling like the movie was familiar.

"Brokeback Mountain; I thought it was fitting for us." Red grinned and looked over when he felt Robin tense beside him. "Robin?" Red frowned as he noticed Robin's tight frown.

"I watched this movie with Slade, back when," Robin cut himself off and stared at his coke.

"Sorry, sorry," Red instantly flicked the television off and jumped off the couch. "Don't worry, just pretend that never happened. There are other movies. Here, we'll watch, um, oh, Hedwig and the Angry Inch. You ever see this one?"

"No," Robin shook his head and held his can of soda with both hands until Red was seated next to him again.

"Sorry," Red whispered and wrapped his arm around Robin's shoulders.

"It's okay." Robin assured as he cuddled up to Red's side. "So, what's this one about?" He asked, trying to move on.

"A gay guy that cross dresses and stuff; just watch, it's good. I mean, some of it seems like it's on an acid trip but I like it." Red assured as he grabbed the bag of popcorn and settled it into his lap. He happily munched on the fatty treat.

Robin reached for a handful of popcorn but only received a slap to his hand. "Hey," Robin frowned and narrowed his masked eyes at Red.

"No dirty gloves in the popcorn bag." Red declared. "Seriously, you're constantly wearing those gloves; I don't know where they've been."

"Fine," Robin sighed and took off his right glove, throwing it atop of his other clothes. He reached back into the bag and took a handful. Red X snorted and Robin frowned. "What?" he questioned.

"One glove on, one glove off; you're not symmetrical for once." Red pointed out and Robin rolled his eyes, although it went unnoticed since he was still wearing his mask.

"Be quiet, you're distracting me from the movie." Robin accused and settled his head on Red's shoulder as they remained quiet and watched the film.

During a rather slow part in the movie, Red started to finger Robin's glove. Robin tensed against him and moved his hand, hoping that Red would just be content with watching the movie and wouldn't question anything. Luck wasn't on his side.

"Why won't you let me remove your glove?" Red X asked with a frown on his face. Robin pursed his lips into a frown as well. He didn't have an excuse and he could tell that Red X already suspected why he wanted his glove on. Red carefully removed Robin's glove and looked at the lines across the thin wrists. Robin closed his eyes as he sighed.

When a soft kiss was delivered over his cut wrists, Robin opened his eyes again and stared at Red in confusion. "My mother used to cut herself." Red stated as he rubbed over Robin's cuts gently with his thumb. "I always thought the little 'x' designs she would make were really pretty, even though I was old enough to understand what she was doing and why.

"My dad was abusive." Red X explained quietly. "He used to come home from working in an office all day and beat my mom. She would never let him lay a hand on me because she claimed that I never did anything wrong." Red X stopped touching Robin's cuts for a moment but continued, uninterrupted. "I once told her that she never did anything wrong, after my dad had hit her and left to go to the bar, and she had started to cry. That was the only time she ever cried in front of me."

Red hummed for a moment, absentmindedly, as he continued his tale. "She was a very organized mother and she always had a schedule for when she did certain things. Every Monday she made meatloaf for dinner, every Saturday my dad never came home so I got to spend the night in her room with her, and then every Thursday she took a bath.

"I still remember how my mother would always come out from her weekly bath and complain about cutting herself with her razor." Red X smiled; his eyes sad but his smile genuine. "Those cuts were accidental. But I never understood, if she hated cutting herself with her razor, why the last thing she ever did was cut herself in the bath." Red chuckled; awkwardly and forced.

"It was a real shock for me." He continued. "I was seven and my dad had come home angry again. I went to go check on my mom after her bath had taken over two hours and that's when I found her. She was still in her clothes and the tub was filled and her blood was still draining out of her wrist; her razor sitting on the ledge of the bath.

"When my dad entered the bathroom he didn't say a word as I just stood there and stared. He went and called the police, reported it as a suicide and informed them of her habit of always hurting herself. They took her away in a black body bag and the next day my dad left, permanently, and took all the stuff while I was in school. I still haven't seen him to this very day but I know he owns some big company now." Red leaned his head against the couch and smiled. "His company was the first one I ever robbed from."

Robin stared at Red, mutely for a moment, until he wrapped his arms around Red's midsection and pressed a careful kiss to his cheek. "I'm sorry," he apologized.

"Why? You didn't do anything wrong." Red replied easily.

"No, I did and I shouldn't have." Robin stared at his wrist and sighed. "It was just so odd when I was doing it, almost like I wasn't even doing it to myself. Honestly, I'm not suicidal, Red; I promise you I'm not. It was just a one time thing and I won't do it again. Now that I know it upsets you so much."

"I guess this night is just filled with upsetting memories, huh?" Red X smiled sadly as he rubbed Robin's back. "Don't hurt yourself again; you've been through enough pain already." Red whispered into his hair as he kissed the top of his head.

"I won't," Robin assured him. They sat in each other's embrace for a moment until the television suddenly blared to life with loud music.

"We missed the good part!" Red exclaimed wildly and grabbed for the remote. He hurriedly rewound the movie. "Don't look; you'll ruin it for yourself." He covered Robin's eyes with one hand. Robin grinned and tried to pry the hand off his face. "No, not yet; it's not ready for you to see it yet!" Red shouted and kept his hand suctioned to Robin's face.

Robin laughed, at ease at the moment, and fought to pry Red's hand off his face. Red jumped on top of Robin and continued to block his view, even though the movie was rewound and paused. "No, no," he cried wildly and moved every which way as Robin squirmed and laughed.

It was another good night for them.

* * *

"I'm drenched!" Red X exclaimed as he removed his gloves with difficulty. He pulled off his mask and frowned. "Stupid rain ruining our date," he complained as he went to his closet and pulled out a towel. He threw a towel to Robin and the hero graciously dried off his hair.

"I have to say, that downpour was pretty unexpected. But we did get here quickly from the beach." Robin smiled as he rubbed his towel on his head.

"Yeah but we still got soaked to the bone." Red complained as he desperately pealed off his wet clothes. "I'm so glad this place has a dryer. Do you want me to dry your stuff too? You can hang with me until they're dry. It'll only take twenty minutes."

Robin frowned and shifted from one foot to the other. "Thanks for the offer but I might as well just head back to the Tower now. I mean, I'll have to go back and I'll end up getting wet again so it'd be a waste."

"Not if you just spend the night." Red suggested. "You can go back to the tower before everyone wakes up. I'm not pressuring you or anything," Red quickly exclaimed. "I'm just throwing out a suggestion. If you want to leave you can. Or you can borrow some of my clothes, snuggle on the couch with me, and drink some hot chocolate while we watch bad, late night shows before falling asleep."

Robin chewed on his bottom lip for a moment. It sounded like a nice idea and he did trust Red not to try anything. But was he really ready to spend the night with another guy, even if they didn't do anything?

Staring at Red's bare chest and his reassuring smile, Robin nodded. "I'll stay tonight."

"Awesome," Red grinned. "But next sleep over is at your house." He winked as he strolled into his room to find two sets of clothes.

* * *

It was another night out on the rooftops for Robin but he was use to such surroundings and never really minded them. Especially when he knew that the cool breeze making him shiver from his head to his toes would soon be replaced by the warm embrace of Red X.

Despite what people thought of Red X, he didn't steal every night. That would be too much work for him. Honestly, he wasn't an overachieving thief; he just took what he wanted at the time or enough to get him by for a while. Normally, he stole five or six times a month. But Robin still met with him almost six nights a week after patrol or during patrol when Red would randomly jump him from behind and start a sparring match. Actually, it was more of a dodging match since Red X didn't throw too many punches and didn't want to waste any of the Xenothium on Robin when he didn't need to.

However, Robin's plan for the night was to arrive at the spot Red X had told him to meet at during their phone conversation. (Of course Robin had given Red a communicator too; Red had begged and Robin practically gave those away anyway.)

He sat on the edge of the building, leaning back on his elbows as his legs dangled off the side. Robin looked up above him at the beautiful night sky. That was one thing Robin didn't miss about Gotham's knights; the ugly, dark sky.

Jump City's sky was more of a dark blue or purple instead of a black. The stars weren't covered by clouds and the crescent moon presented enough illumination to lead people through even the darkest alleyways.

Robin's vision of the beautiful night sky was suddenly obstructed though by Red's mask. "Hey there, good looking. What are you doing out on a night like this?" Red X asked playfully.

Robin smiled. "I'm waiting for my boyfriend."

"Are you just saying that because you don't want me to hit on you?" Red sat down next to Robin with a plop.

"I'm telling you the truth. But I'd advice you not to hit on me or else my boyfriend might beat you up." Robin smirked. "Actually, I'm stronger than him so I'd just beat you up."

"Stronger than your boyfriend, hm? Well, it sounds to me like you need to drop that skinny assed guy and get with the real champ, i.e., me." Red slipped his arm around Robin's shoulder.

"I don't need him for physical strength. Besides, he's strong enough for me to lean and depend on." Robin smiled and leaned up against Red's side, relaxing his head on Red's shoulder as his hand softly stroked up and down Robin's arm. "Plus, he really makes me happy."

Red hummed happily. "I bet he feels the same way about you." He pulled his mask up to his nose and pressed a quick kiss to Robin's head then tugged his mask back down. "But forget what I said. You two sound perfect together. You should stay with him forever."

Robin chuckled and then they both just sat for a while, enjoying the noises of the night and basking in each other's presence. "Why this spot, Red?" Robin asked after a while.

"No real reason, I just want this place to have a good memory for us." Red X moved his hand from around Robin's shoulders to ruffle through his belt. He pulled out a small silver chain with a large heart between the chains. "This is for you."

"Oh, Red," Robin smiled as he took it. He looked closer at the heart and saw that there was a red 'x' emblazed on it. "It's beautiful." Robin took off his left glove and had Red put fasten it on. The cold metal went right over his healing cuts.

"It's from the jewelry store I first robbed to get your attention." Red X smiled under his mask.

"Red," Robin frowned as he looked at the beautiful bracelet contrasting against his marred and pale skin.

"No, I actually bought it." Red X reassured, earning a smile out of Robin. "Though, I did use the cash that I got from robbing the store in the first place to purchase it. Which kind of makes the whole ordeal moot, I guess," Red X pondered.

Robin sighed but shook his head good naturedly. "Still, I'll pretend you got it legally. Thank you," Robin smiled sweetly, showing that his gratitude was sincere.

"You're welcome." Red X watched as Robin placed his glove back on over the bracelet. Only a few bumps really gave the bracelet away, otherwise it looked as if Robin wasn't wearing anything under his glove at all. Robin was glad that the bracelet hid so well; he wouldn't have to take it off now.

"Really though, why this apartment building?" Robin asked, curious still as well as a tad suspicious. "I know it's not on some sort of whim so don't try to give me that. You never do something without a real reason behind it."

Red X sighed. "Why did I have to date such a smart detective?" He chuckled though. "Well, I grew up in one of the apartments below us. I guess you can say I'm trying to live past the horror of this place from starting anew here with a positive outlook." Red explained. Robin nodded his understanding and reached for Red's hand, squeezing it reassuringly in his own.

"We're both just trying to heal and move on," he spoke absently. Red agreed and nudged Robin's head with his own. They sat with one another in silence for an hour.

* * *

It was months later when Robin found himself unable to sleep. Robin turned for the millionth time that night as he lay awake in his bed. He blinked when his hand brushed against something warm and then sat up. He sighed and poked the form in his bed. Red X turned around and yawned. "Morning already?" he asked with an innocent smile on his face.

"What are you doing in my bed?" Robin asked as he folded his arms over his chest and looked down disapprovingly at Red.

"Trying to sleep, but if you want to do something else then you know that I'm game." Red X smirked as he placed his hands under his head. Robin sighed and Red frowned as he sat up. "I came to see if it was true that you slept with your mask on. Guess it is; interesting." He tired with a grin. Robin continued to stare disapprovingly at him. Red frowned, "I just don't want to be alone tonight. So, do you mind if I spend the night? You know I won't try anything."

Robin frowned, sensing that something was wrong. "Of course I don't mind, but you really should have given me some warning that you were going to drop by."

"Sorry, but it was sort of an impulse for me to come here." Red lied back down and Robin followed suit.

"So, why don't you want to be alone tonight?" Robin asked as his detective senses told him that something was really bothering Red. He could tell by the distant look in his green eyes. "Red?" He asked, his concern showing in his voice, as he started to stroke Red's back.

Red sighed. "Tonight marks the tenth anniversary of my mother's suicide." Silence filled the room as Robin thought about what he should say. He then decided that words never worked well enough for him when he had tried to express himself before.

Sliding his arms over the white sheets, he wrapped himself around Red X and rested his head on his boyfriend's chest. Red smiled and pulled Robin closer and then down against the bed. They both closed their eyes and fell asleep in each other's arms.

* * *

"Happy Birthday!" Red X shouted as soon as Robin closed the door behind him. Robin startled and his eyes widened as he looked at Red.

"Red, you have to be careful about sneaking into my room! The Titans could have heard you or…did you get me a gift?" Robin smirked as he noticed that Red's clothes were strewn over his bed. The thief only had his mask and cape on. Also a pair of white boxers with… "What do your boxers say?"

"Rockin' Robin." Red removed his mask and smirked. "Don't you love them? I got you a matching pair as well." Red moved over to Robin's desk as Robin shook his head and contained his chuckles.

"And, for an extra treat," Red grinned and looked over his shoulder as he pressed a few buttons on Robin's laptop.

"What? You hacked onto my computer?" Robin asked as he folded his arms over his chest.

"Well, that, and I'm going to give you a little dance show especially and exclusively for you. I'll strip too if you want me to but I'd have to get dressed for so it can last longer." Red X moved the mouse and clicked on something on the screen that Robin couldn't see. Robin shook his head and grinned as the idea of Red stripping for him flashed through his head. A few seconds later a song was blasting off of Robin's laptop.

"Is that Rockin' Robin?" Robin asked, amused as Red started to shake his hips and swayed his hands over his head. Stripper music was either becoming more decent, or Red X was just crazy.

"By the one and only Bobby Day himself," Red grinned and continued to shake his body to the rhythm of the music. Robin couldn't hold it back anymore and he started to laugh. Red X twirled around in his boxers and cape and Robin leaned against the wall as he burst open with his laughter.

When the song finally finished, Red X strode over to Robin and kneeled next to him, since Robin had fallen to the floor with laughter. "So, what did you think of your gift?" Red asked. "That's not all of it, mind you, but I thought that was the best part."

"That," Robin panted as he sat up and wrapped his arms around Red's neck. "Was the best gift I have ever received." He brought Red down to his level and pressed his lips lightly to the thief's, to show him his appreciation. "And you didn't even have to steal anything." Robin added as he broke the kiss.

* * *

**A.N.** END OF SHAMELESS FLUFF! I hope you enjoyed it!~


	13. Chapter 13

**Title:** A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating:** M throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Past Sladin with RobinRed X  
**Chapter Summary:** A lot of hurdles are finally jumped in Red and Robin's relationship.

**Author's Note: **Oh goodness, another two month update. Well, I can happily inform you guys that this story is coming to a close before I leave for college this August. The end of August, but still. That means, about three-ish? more chapters *will* be happening in the next two and a half months. Also, I feel happy and a bit embarrassed about this chapter. You'll see why.

* * *

**Marching On**

Red had told him beforehand that they were due for a night in and that just so happened to be exactly what Robin had wanted. After all, it was an important night for the boys.

Robin landed on the fire escape easily, his cape slowly trailing down to lay flat against his back. He pulled the window up and jumped in to instantly be hit with an array of smells. Robin sniffed the heavenly air; it almost reminded him of standing in the kitchen at Wayne Manor while Alfred prepared a feast. His eyes snapped open to find Red busy in the kitchen.

"Did I come into the wrong apartment?" Robin asked with a smirk as he eyed Red happily. He liked seeing Red X in jeans and a t-shirt, it made him seem like the real boy he was. Although, the apron tied around Red didn't seem as out of place as it probably should have.

"You're early," Red sighed as he quickly covered the pot he had been stirring and turned the temperature up. "I suppose it's for the best though; dinner is almost ready."

"So, it's our one year anniversary." Robin acknowledged with a sly grin. As if Red really didn't have it marked on his pocket calendar with a large heart.

"Really?" Red X asked as he wiped his hands off on the apron he was wearing. "I had no idea; I'm such a horrible boyfriend. How can you ever forgive me for forgetting our anniversary?" Red asked dramatically as he held the back of his hand up to his forehead and stared up at the ceiling as though he was about to faint.

"Red," Robin smirked and pointed to his apron.

"Yeah, yeah," Red wagged the finger away. "Your gift is in my bedroom and I'm making dinner. I'm pretty much a house wife." Red sighed as he peeked into the closed pot and then turned the stove to a lower setting just as something went off in the oven. Red quickly pulled on two oven mitts and took a covered pan out of the oven and closed it with his foot.

Robin stepped behind Red and wrapped his arms around his waist as he rested his chin on Red's shoulder. "Smells good," he commented.

"I hope it tastes good," Red smiled and turned his head to place a kiss on Robin's cheek. "Now, get out of my kitchen until I'm all done."

"Pushy thief," Robin smirked as he slowly slipped out of the kitchen. "Whatever will I do to entertain myself while you're in the kitchen?"

"Do what every working husband does when he's waiting on his wife; drink beer and watch TV." Red called out, making Robin chuckle as he sauntered over to the couch. He took off his boots and his cape to place them under the window he used as an entryway. Robin settled into the couch and wiggled his toes in his socks as he relaxed and patiently waited.

"Robin, I hate to wake you, but I don't want everything to get cold." Red whispered as he trailed his fingers through Robin's hair. A sleepy moan escaped Robin as he blinked open his eyes and smiled up at Red.

"I didn't even realize I had fallen asleep." He admitted as he stretched and stood from the couch. Red grinned and Robin frowned. "Did you draw on my face?" Robin asked as he remembered the original threat Red had told him about falling asleep in his apartment.

"Yeah, but it's under your mask so no one will really know." Red assured him as he pressed a quick kiss to Robin's cheek. "Come on now, our food's waiting."

"Wait a moment," Robin headed to the bathroom. He took off his mask and stared at the corner of his left eye where a black little heart with a red 'x' inside of it sat. Robin smiled and shook his head good naturedly. "You're so mature." Robin commented, rolling his eyes, since they were visible now, as he tucked his mask into his belt.

"You love it," Red smiled as he finished dishing out two plates and lit two candles in the middle of the small table.

Robin sniffed the air and hummed happily, "Chicken and pasta; nice." He commented as he took his seat.

"It's pretty much the fanciest thing I know how to cook, okay?" Red shrugged his shoulders.

"I appreciate you cooking for me." Robin beamed.

A goofy smile bloomed on Red's face. "You are such a charmer with your baby blues. But seriously, don't say anything until after we find out if this is all edible or not." He grinned. "Well, here goes nothing," Red picked up his knife and fork and began to dig in.

* * *

After the meal, which ended with both of them still living to Red's great pleasure, Robin helped Red do the dishes. He had offered to do them by himself but Red had insisted on helping. Then Red had gotten distracted with the soap bubbles and blowing them everywhere. Robin ended up doing the dishes mostly by himself and helping Red clean up the soapy kitchen.

The two settled on the couch and Red X pulled out his guitar. He blushed as he told Robin that he had finished the song for him.

"I still have some things I want to fix, but I wanted to share this with you today." Red cleared his throat and began to pluck one cord after another. A pleasing tone filled the air as Red strummed away on his guitar.

"A Robin flies through the air,

Protecting all who see his yellow wings.

An ordinary bird with an extraordinary heart;

He has the strength to carry us to paradise."

Red's soft voice mixed in with the chords as Robin listened quietly to the carefully chosen words.

"What makes a hero,

Is what makes him special to me.

A Robin so carefree,

He always flies to the clouds.

Nothing can bring this bird down."

Red tapped his foot for a few beats as he continued to strum on his strings.

"Just wait,

The Robin will fly back.

Always, the Robin will come.

Stronger than the dove,

The Robin is the one I love."

Red's face reddened a bit.

"What makes a hero,

Is what makes him special to me.

A Robin so carefree,

He always flies to the clouds.

Nothing can bring this bird down."

Red continued to pluck at the guitar strings until he finished with a flourish strum down all the cords. He cleared his throat and looked up at Robin with a nervous smile, "Happy Anniversary."

"That was the greatest gift I've ever received." Robin admitted as he wrapped his arms around Red's neck and pulled him into a heated kiss. Robin can't even speak except with his body and he's screaming in joy. Each lap of his tongue against Red's tongue was a compliment straight to the heart. Robin's heat as he climbed onto Red's lap and pressed against him was 'thank you' made physical.

When Robin pulled back there was a thin strip of salvia connecting the corner of their lips but Robin disregarded it as he pushed in for one last quick kiss before finally trying to intake the amount of oxygen he had spent kissing Red.

"I have a gift for you too," Robin smiled. "I would have bought you something but I figured you steal anything you want. Instead, I got you something that I want you to have and that you can't buy." He slowly started to remove his clothes. He pulled his shirt up and over his head, his arms stretching up and exposing his flat, taught stomach.

"Robin," Red's mouth went dry even as his fingers twitched to touch the creamy skin in front of him. "We don't have to do that just 'cause it's our anniversary, you know? I mean, I'll gladly wait until our tenth year anniversary or something. I just, I don't want to rush you."

"No, Red, I want to." Robin stood up and held out his hand to help Red stand as well. "I want you," he admitted as he pulled Red up. He squeezed Red's hand for reassurance and led him into the bedroom.

Robin laid on his back on the bed as he brought Red down with him, forcing Red to straddle him. "Touch me," Robin whispered as he wiggled a hand under Red's shirt to help urge the shirt off. Red quickly pulled the fabric up and off of him as he leaned forward and lapped at Robin's neck.

Robin moaned pleasantly and brought a knee up to rub in between Red's legs. Red groaned and retaliated by bringing his thumbs down to circle Robin's nipples until two perk stubs stood hard. Robin bucked his hips up as Red's hands went lower and tickled his sensitive sides in exploration of his ribs. His covered erection bumped into Red's own and the two moaned in syncopation.

"Pants are problematic," Robin panted as he eagerly removed his belt and then started to pull his pants down.

"Wait," Red planted his hands on Robin's shoulders before his pants had even passed his slim hips. "I want to."

Red loomed over Robin and suddenly Robin saw Slade's mask instead of Red's smiling face. He felt like he was reliving it all over again; the hands on his shoulders, the legs straddling his hips, and the knowledge of what was about to come. Robin stared blankly up at the ceiling for a moment, his hands falling to his sides and allowing Red to slowly start to work Robin's pants off instead. Robin started to shake with sobs and immediately Red's smile fell and he quickly pulled Robin's pants back up as he hugged his loved one.

"It's okay, Robin," Red feared this would happen but he knew how to console Robin by this point in their relationship. "I'm not going to do anything anymore. I'm going to stop because I'm not like him; I don't like to see you hurt." He pulled Robin into a sitting position and allowed for the boy to wet his shoulder as the tears followed the sobs. He soothingly rubbed Robin's trembling back as he held him. Robin was such a fragile child and Slade had broken him too much.

"I'm sorry," Robin sobbed as he squeezed Red tighter. "I know you're not him," his sobs started winding down but his tears continued. "But it just felt too much like it. But you're not him; you love me and I love you; I want this with you." Robin rested his head on Red's shoulder and Red hugged the boy closer.

Red X prayed that he'd be able to fix the shattered pieces that Slade had left. "I know, Robin, and I understand. But I'm not going to force you like he did. I can wait forever." Damn Slade. Red X swore that he'd make the man pay for what he did.

"I ruined our anniversary." Robin moped. "I couldn't even give you a present after you gave me something so wonderful."

"That's not true. Don't worry, Robin, all I wanted tonight was to be with you and you've given me that." Red assured as he nuzzled his cheek against Robin's own. "I don't care about anything else except spending time with you."

Red dried Robin's tears and pressed a careful kiss to his lips. Robin meekly responded to the kiss with a devastated sigh. "Can I," Robin pursed his lips together and looked down at Red's messy floor. Robin blinked as he looked at his reflection in a shiny CD lying on the floor. He caught sight of the little black heart near his eye and for some reason he felt better.

"Can I spend the night here with you? To make up for this fluke of a gift?" Robin asked as he pressed up against Red.

Red smiled and stroked his hand through Robin's hair. "Of course. You know I love cuddling with you. You're like a giant, warm stuff animal." Robin chuckled softly, mostly for the effort that Red was putting forth to try and make him feel better. Still, he curled up next to Red in the little bed and the two slept fitfully in each others' arms.

* * *

Robin crept into the tower a little later than usual the next day and was glad that he at least beat his teammates to the kitchen. "Morning, Cyborg," Robin greeted as his buddy entered the room and headed straight for a cup of coffee. He always needed one cup, with a lot of cream and sugar, to help wake him up.

"Morning for you maybe," Cyborg mumbled. "I haven't even gotten to bed yet. Beast Boy had to insist that we pull an all nighter since you were out with your boyfriend. We all hoped that you would come in late so we could skip over practice but I saw you coming in so I figured I might as well stay up for practice and then pass out for the rest of the day." Cyborg rambled as he stirred in an extra spoonful of sugar.

Robin felt his breath stop as he stared at Cyborg. He hadn't heard a word pass the word 'boyfriend.' The very word coming out of Cyborg's mouth sounded like doom to Robin.

Cyborg blinked as he waved a hand in front of Robin's stunned face. "You okay, man? You don't," Cyborg stopped and pursed his lips together. "This is why I need to sleep; I get so loose lipped when I don't get enough sleep." Cyborg sighed and took a long sip from his coffee mug. "Listen, you don't need to freak. We all figured you had a significant other when you first started staying out practically every night. We don't care. We're glad you found someone to make you happy. Even if it is Red X."

"How do you know that it's Red X?" Robin asked with absolute horror.

"Um, BB and I got a little curious one night and, against Raven's wishes, we kinda followed you." Cyborg frowned and rubbed at his neck, embarrassed. "At first we were worried that Red X was going to be your newest 'Slade obsession' but then we saw you guys holding hands and," Cyborg shrugged. "Like I said, we're all happy for you, man, and Star wants to ask you to bring him over sometime but we've been able to restrain her so far. You deserve to have someone, Robin."

"Thanks," Robin licked his parched lips. "I, I really appreciate that you guys are so accepting."

"Man, you really thought an alien princess, a half-demon, a changeling, and a cyborg would care that the human on our team happened to be gay?" Cyborg stared at Robin until a smirk broke across Robin's face.

"Okay, okay, I hear you. Still, thanks, you know?" Robin smiled as Cyborg reached out and punched him playfully in the shoulder. "Anyway, we'll have an afternoon practice today so you can go ahead and hit the bed."

"Sweet salvation here I come." Cyborg cried out happily as he placed his mug in the sink and strolled toward his room.

Robin couldn't help but continue to smile for the rest of the day.

* * *

Robin happily leaped into the air, maneuvering his body to perform a back flip as he landed on the other rooftop silently. He grinned widely and quickly ran into the shadows the sunset provided him. He crept forward slowly until he was beside the motionless Red X. Robin stood by him for a few moments, looking down at the street and trying to figure out what Red was staring at so intently that he still didn't notice Robin.

"So, what're you doing?" He finally asked.

Red jerked backward and his hand flew up with a red 'x' weapon at the ready. "Robin," Red growled, "Don't sneak up on me like that. My heart condition, remember, the one you're giving me?" Red X held a hand to his chest over dramatically.

"Sorry," Robin grinned, showing that he wasn't the least bit sorry. "But seriously, what are you doing up here?"

"People watching," Red's voice turned solemn as he looked back down at the street below them. Robin frowned as he looked at the building across from the rooftop they were on. It was a business building owned by one of Bruce Wayne's competitors. The business owned many of the shops in Jump City and produced a lot of products. It even owned the local movie theater.

"That's the executor of the company right there." Red pointed out to Robin as a man hollered to a taxi. There was a red haired woman on his arm and Robin could tell, even from the distance he was at, that she was giggling at something the executive was saying. "That's his newest secretary; the third red head in the last two months. He always liked red heads." An unfamiliar bitter tone snuck into Red's voice.

"Red?" Robin placed a hand on Red's shoulder comfortingly. "Who is that man?"

"A Mr. Ronald Jones," Red answered. Robin licked his lips and glanced down at the man just as he climbed into the cab with the woman. He looked back up at Red and opened his mouth to ask but Red beat him to it. "Yeah, he's my dad." Red answered the unspoken question. They both watched as the cab pulled away. "Let's go," Red grabbed Robin's hand and turned away from the street.

They didn't talk about it for the rest of the night but Red's dad stayed on Robin's mind, even while Red did his best to act like he normally did on their nights out.

When Robin returned to the tower, he hit his laptop. Robin felt bad doing it, but he looked up Ronald Jones in his search files. His curiosity was killing him, especially since he finally had a lead on who Red X really was. Even though he loved Red, he really wanted to know more about him.

He found two articles about Ronald Jones. One mentioned how quickly Ronald rose to be an executive and the other mentioned his wife and how she went insane and killed herself and their son, a Scott Jones. Robin's eyes narrowed at the screen as he re-read that particular article. Red had mentioned his mother killing herself but had never said anything about a brother. That got his curiosity going again.

Robin went for a quick visit to Jump City's graveyard late that night.

It took him awhile but he found the headstone belonging to both Martha Jones and Scott Jones. It was well taken care of and Robin had a good suspicion that it wasn't because of Ronald. He stared at the simple grave and traced the carved in letters of 'Scott'.

Robin froze as he heard a rustle behind him and he quickly turned around to come face to face with Red X. Red held a single daisy in his gloved hand.

"You're dead," Robin stated as he frowned and watched Red kneel by the grave and place the flower down.

"Well, I am to him, and the rest of the world. But sometimes ghost have the amazing ability not to rest in peace." Red X shrugged. "Scott's dead, at least. But Red X lives on in his memory." Red stood and Robin took a step to be by his side as they both looked at the grave.

"You only steal from the companies that his business owns." Robin figured. "I ran a search and discovered that."

"And wherever I can find Xenothium," Red nodded. "I know I'm probably nothing more than a thorn in his side, but that's what a son is supposed to be to their fathers, right?"

"He doesn't deserve a son like you." Robin told him as he took Red's hand in his own.

"I know," Red agreed. "That's why I let him kill me off. I could have gone up to the papers; I could still do so now, and tell them how he left me after my mom's suicide. I could let the press know all about his habit of beating women and children, but it still wouldn't change him; nothing will."

They stood in silence for a few minutes until Robin squeezed his hand and started to pull him away. "Come stay the night with me." Red nodded silently and followed Robin to his bike.

* * *

"Robin, Robin, wake up." Red shook Robin awake, ignoring his annoyed groans. "We didn't set an alarm last night and now your team is up. How am I going to get out of here undetected?" Red asked in alarm.

"Relax," Robin rubbed at his eyes then grabbed his mask from the side table. "They already know we're dating and they probably won't care if you join us for breakfast."

Red stared at Robin, his green eyes wide and unblinking. "They know about us dating?"

"Yeah," Robin grinned. "I was surprised when I found out too." He shrugged and ran his hands through his hair, making the spikes stand up. "But they accept us both and since your crimes are so low keyed most of the time, I really don't think they'll mind if you steal some breakfast too."

Red gulped. "This is like me pretty much meeting your parents." Red X's eyes widened even more. "Oh god, am I going to have to meet Batman one day?"  
Robin burst into loud laughter. "Let's just focus on meeting the Titans for right now." Robin pulled on his gloves, fingering the bracelet he had yet to take off. "That'll be the first test."

Red grinned and pulled his mask down. He paused for a moment and then pulled it half up. "So, I guess I should just keep my mask like this if I'm going to eat, right?"

"It's up to you really." Robin replied.

Red hummed to himself before he went to Robin's closet and threw the doors open. "Can I borrow one of your masks? I feel ridiculous with my mask like this. It's like I'm trying to be some sort of Spiderman copy-cat."

Robin scoffed. "Sure, but they'll see your hair." Robin reminded him.

"Whatever. I'm obviously not too keen on having a secret identity anyways. I mean, I did practically tell you my entire history, just not in so few words." Red pointed out. Robin nodded in agreement. Red tucked his mask into his belt and then placed one of Robin's masks over his eyes. "Whoa, how does this mask stay on?"  
"It's specially made." Robin replied as he threw his cape over his shoulders. "Well, ready for breakfast?"

Red X took a deep breath. "It's now or never." He grabbed Robin's hand and walked alongside him to the main room.

Starfire was in the middle of cooking something with Silkie carefully watching for any explosions or messes to personally clean up. Raven was in a corner levitating as she meditated and ignored Cyborg and Beast Boy laughing while they watched morning cartoons.

Starfire noticed the two standing in the doorway first. "Robin, glorious morning to you and your trafli'n." She beamed and flew up to the couple. "I am correct in guessing that this is the Red X, yes?"

"Yeah, Star, this is Red." Robin smiled back.

"I'm a what now?" Red asked, confused by Starfire's alien language.

"You are Robin's trafli'n, yes?" Starfire blinked and moved closer to Red, sniffing him. "You smell like him and are holding his hand like most pairs of trafli'ns do here on Earth."

"Well, if trafli'n means something like boyfriend then, yeah, I am." Red stated.

"Wonderful!" Starfire clapped her hands together. "I will no longer think of you negatively then." She grinned and flew back over to the stove. "I am glad I am already preparing food from Tamaran for a first meal with Robin's trafli'n deserves a celebratory dish."

"Hey, Red X." The couple turned to see Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Raven all leaning against the couch, staring at them. "It's nice to finally see you. Seriously," Cyborg grinned. "You're normally invisible or bouncing all over the place."

"That's 'cause you guys are normally trying to catch me or something." Red shrugged as he went down the few steps with Robin. "But now that you do have a clear view you have to promise not to try and be too jealous of Robin." Cyborg snorted and held out his fist. Red bumped it accordingly.

"Dude, Red X is a redhead. How fitting is that?" Beast Boy grinned as he noted the bright hair color.

"Thanks for pointing that out, Sherlock." Raven sighed. "Are you staying for breakfast, Red X?"

"It depends," Red skeptically looked at Starfire's pot as a yellow liquid began to bubble over the edges.

"I'll cook." Cyborg offered. "I can make eggs, bacon, sausage, toast, and waffles. Raven loves waffles." He pointed to the goth and she nodded in agreement.

"And I can make tofu eggs, tofu bacon, tofu sausage, and use soymilk to make waffles." Beast Boy countered.

"Um, I'm not really into the vegetarian thing." Red commented.

Beast Boy frowned with a sigh. "No one ever is." He sulked as Cyborg chuckled.

"I'm getting my tea before Starfire's cooking makes the kitchen start fighting us again." Raven commented as she glided over to the drawers.

Cyborg and Beast Boy raced over to the refrigerator and started piling ingredients on the countertop. Red smiled as he watched the team at work. He glanced at Robin as he felt the other squeeze his hand. Robin smiled back at him and Red X knew that things were going well.

* * *

"Are you sure?" Red X asked, his voice filled with concern, as he looked Robin over. The Boy Wonder was stripped down to nothing but his boxers, leaving only a little for Red X to wonder about.

Robin nodded. "I'm sure. I want this," and then he added, "I want you." He looked up at Red and smiled as the other sat on the edge of the bed and placed his hand on Robin's thigh. "To feel you with me, inside me, around me; to feel your love and to feel you feel my love; I want it the way it's supposed to happen." Robin nodded, sure of himself.

"I promise," Red's voice dropped to a low whisper, "it'll be different than it was with him." Red X kissed Robin and the younger teen wrapped his arms around Red's neck.

"It already is different; I want it, I love you, I can kiss you, hold you, and it's both of our choices." Robin smiled as Red moved him to lie on his back.

"You tell me if anything starts to feel bad." Red whispered against Robin's mouth as he covered the soft lips a second later. Robin moaned as he felt Red's tongue slide over his teeth and twirl around his own tongue.

Red's hands snaked up and down Robin's warm sides, lightly tickling him. Robin gasped and mewled around Red's tongue as his stomach muscles clenched. He moaned loudly while his fingers ran through Red's hair, surprisingly soft and not stiff from product like his own.

Red left Robin's lip to kiss down Robin's neck. His hands hesitantly traced the top of Robin's boxers, dipping under the elastic to touch the head of Robin's cock. Robin's hips bucked up automatically and Red's body moved instantly to rub his own rock hard erection against Robin's.

"Fuck," Red moaned and pulled away from Robin to quickly pull off his shirt. "I am wearing way too much clothes to be considered legal right now." He mumbled as he chucked his shirt in a corner of his bedroom.

He leaned back down and attacked Robin's neck, his lips kissing his Adam's apple as his teeth then lightly scraped at his jugular. Robin moaned and he racked his hands down Red's muscular back. Red shuddered at the feeling of blunt nails trailing across his skin.

The redhead reached down and undid his pants, lowering them and the waistband of his boxers enough so his erection was freed. Robin licked his lips and lifted his hips in invitation which Red takes as he slid Robin's boxers down and off. The rest of their clothes joined the mess on Red's floor.

Red moved in between Robin's legs, his thighs parting like water, and he lifted Robin's legs up so that his thighs rest against his chest. Robin's calves were on the redhead's shoulders, his feet dangling in the air.

Robin started to feel a slight anxiety in his chest and focused on his breathing to calm himself down. He didn't notice when Red moved to grab the lube and he jerked with surprise when he felt Red's finger brush against his entrance.

"You okay, Robin?" Red asked, concern growing in his green eyes. Robin nodded and offered Red a smile and, although it was a bit weak, Red trusted Robin to know how far to go.

Robin felt the tip of Red's index finger into his anus and liquid fire swirled down his chest to his groan. "Agh," Robin bit down on his lip to block the cry and Red froze. "I'm fine," Robin panted and nodded for Red to continue.

Red swirled his index finger against the resistance with his middle finger tickling the puckered skin surrounding his index. It loosened up on its own and he was able to slowly insert all the way up to the third knuckle. Red scissored his fingers and suddenly hit Robin's prostate dead on. Robin tensed and cried out in orgasmic pleasure.

A delighted expression formed on Red's face as he pressed hard on that spot and watched Robin squirm with pleasure. "Red, please," Robin begged as Red gently pushed his prostate again. "I'm, I'm going to come if you keep doing that." He warned. It was as though hot lava was flowing thickly through every vein inside him.

Red grinned. "Is that a promise?"

"Red," Robin groaned.

"I'm teasing," Red removed his fingers and quickly rubbed a coat of lube onto his cock.

"I'm aware," Robin managed a small smirk. "Cock tease." He muttered.

Red raised a brow as he gripped himself and led the head to Robin's loose hole. "What was that?" He challenged.

Robin never was one to back down from a challenge so he easily replied, "I said you were a cock tease."

"I thought so," Red grinned and pushed in. Robin threw his head back as a very loud and long moan escaped him. Red was obviously brought to heaven, judging by the look of pure bliss on his face. His eyes were full of different emotions and all of them were aimed right at Robin. "You good?" He asked after enough time had passed for Robin to adjust to him.

"Yeah," Robin grinned, "pretty good right now. I bet I'd feel better once you start moving though."

"I aim to please." Red smiled and started a slow and light pace, letting Robin get use to the feeling.

"I'm good, Red," Robin assured as his blue eyes met green ones. "You can go harder."

Red nodded and went faster, piston in and out halfway, hearing the slick sounds of his cock repeatedly intruding Robin's ass. Robin grunted as he enjoyed the shaft hitting his sweet spot again and again. He had never felt something so good. It was as if the world had imploded around Robin, leaving him in complete isolation with Red. His focus was fully on the teen on top of him.

Their eyes met and then Red leaned forward. They were panting too hard to kiss without risking some sort of mild suffocation happening so they settled on simply basking in one another's hot breaths.

Then Red's hips slammed home once more and he came, his semen covering Robin's insides. The warm rush sent Robin over the edge and he came crashing so hard he blacked out for a moment.

When he opened his eyes, Red's arms were wrapped around him and Red's mouth was moving up and down his neck. "You okay?" Red asked.

Robin smiled and turned in Red's arms to pillow his head under Red's chin. "Never better." He assured the other.

"I love you." Red pressed a kiss to Robin's forehead and nuzzled against him.

"I love you too." Robin grinned and settled in blissful peace. In Red's arms, he felt like he was protected from the world.

* * *

**A.N.** Right, so, that song? Yeah, I made that up but I don't know musical things so just imagine it sounds pretty, okay? ...Right. But anyways. Sex, yay, right?


	14. Chapter 14

**Title:** A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating:** M throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin with RobinRed X  
**Chapter Summary:** Just when things were starting to look good too.

**Author's Note: **Yay, an update, and under a month's time too! Well, folks, I have to say we're entering the end soon. We have either one, maybe two chapters after this one. But don't think about that right now. Just focus on this new chapter. Enjoy!~ ...Oh, but it's kind of dark...

* * *

**Meeting Difficulties**

"Pucker up," Red X wrapped his arms around Robin's small waist and pulled the boy closer. He was grinning madly with the familiar look in his eye that Robin had come to learn meant that he was extremely frisky.

"Red, stop; you know I hate it when you get like this." Robin smirked as he pushed lightly at Red's shoulders.

"No, you hate it when I'm like this and you're still in your pants." Red lifted his brow seductively and growled as he lunged for Robin's sensitive neck. He began to cover the boy with kisses and Robin squirmed delightfully in his arms.

"Red," Robin laughed as Red licked his jaw. "We haven't even made it to my room yet." Robin tried to move farther into his bedroom but Red held him still, making them stay in the doorway.

"I don't care. Anywhere works for me as long as it's with you." He gently bit Robin's ear lobe and the boy moaned.

"Alright then," Robin's eyes fluttered behind his mask. "But let me close the door." He struggled out of Red's hold for a moment to close his bedroom door. It didn't matter if the other Titans didn't mind that Red was over at the Tower constantly now. The Titans had made one rule about Red and Robin was going to follow it no matter what; no sex outside of a locked room.

He flicked on the lock and turned around. "Okay, Red, now we can—"

Then he was pounced.

* * *

"Remember our deal?" Red asked as he tossed the bag full of cash between his hands.

"Which deal was that? We have made quite a few." Robin reminded even as a few memories of past deals floated through his own mind, making him smile softly.

"I meant the one way, way back when we just started dating. Once we were serious enough, which we are now, we could play that when I got away with the stolen goods, I got sexual priorities for the night." The grin underneath Red's mask was predatory.

Robin smirked. "And you're just remembering this deal tonight? You couldn't have remembered it back on Monday when I caught you?"

"You know how unreliable my memory is." Red shrugged and Robin rolled his eyes.

"I suppose I could agree to that. But we start next time, tonight doesn't count." Robin decided and turned around.

"Aw, Robin, come on." Red protested.

Robin shook his head no. "Now let's head to the docks, I have some extra energy I want to spend."

"Don't you think we should head to the apartment then and spend your energy there?" Red asked as he wrapped his arms around Robin's waist and nuzzled his neck. Robin relaxed into the embrace and chuckled.

"We'll just have to see how much energy I have left after the docks." Robin commented as he pulled out of Red's hug but grabbed his hand.

"Well if that's the case then I'm just going to immobilize you." Red grinned cheekily behind his mask. Robin continued to tug Red towards the docks. Both of them were happy with the way their relationship has grown and they hoped it wouldn't change anytime soon. Unfortunately, their hope wasn't enough.

* * *

Robin squirmed, a smile on his face, as Red X grabbed his ticklish sides and gave a soft squeeze. "Looks like I won again tonight." Red X grinned behind his mask and Robin couldn't help himself as he grinned as well. He was in a rare playful sort of mood and it was apparently contagious since Red was mirroring his mood. But then again, Red always seemed to be playful.

"You win practically every night," Robin glared at the masked face resting on his shoulder. His glare held no heat due to the good mood he was in. "You and your stupid belt," he mumbled as he turned around in Red's hold.

"I like my belt better than the one you originally had with the suit. You know why?" Robin shook his head as he wrapped his arms around Red X's neck. "Because it's practically the only item I didn't steal."

"But don't you miss the invisibility shield?" Robin asked with a smirk spreading over his face. "I noticed you didn't have that in your new one. I guess whoever you 'acquired' that belt from didn't have the technology for it available to them."

"Of course I miss it. If I had that little feature then I'd be able to stand behind you all the time and do this." Red X pulled his mask halfway up and started to kiss the exposed area on Robin's neck.

Robin chuckled and pushed lightly at Red's shoulders. "Come on, Red, we'll do this at your place. We're on the middle of a rooftop for Pete's sake."

"Who's Pete? Is there someone you should be telling me about? Hey, is Pete interested in a threesome?" Red X smirked as he wrapped an arm behind the Boy Wonder and squeezed his tight ass.

"X, control yourself!" Robin blushed with a wide grin on his face despite his indignant tone. Red knew to ignore Robin's tone of voice.

"Hey, I won. And we both agreed that whoever won got their choice for the night activity. What would you do if I chose to hang onto your ass all night?" Red X mumbled into Robin's neck and the other teenager sighed.

"I'd probably just remind you to put a quarter into the swear jar." Robin smirked, happy at himself for thinking of that rule. Honestly, he didn't find swearing to be attractive and wanted to break Red's habit of using such foul language. He had set up a jar at Red's apartment, labeled it the 'Swear Jar' in big blocky letters, and told Red that every time one of them swore a quarter was to be added to the jar. The contents of the jar would be given to a charity once it was filled.

"Ah, fuck!" Red X swore again as he forgot about the little swearing system that Robin had set up.

"And now I'd have to remind you to put two quarters into the jar." Robin chuckled; it was never just one quarter with Red X. "But you're right, you did win. So, let's go back to your place and resume this." Robin looked around and shivered. "I swear I feel like someone's watching us."

"Kinky, should we ask him if he wants to join? Hey, do you think it's Pete?" Red grinned as he pulled away from his boyfriend's neck. Robin sighed as he smiled and shook his head.

"You're hopeless sometimes, I swear." He pulled out of the thief's hands and walked away from him. "So, are we going back to your place or do you want to go to the beach again or what?" Robin asked as he turned around and was surprised to not see Red X behind him, staring at his ass. He had swayed his hips knowing that it would catch his attention. "Red?" Robin called as he looked around the rooftop.

He nearly died of a combination of fright and shock as he saw Slade standing a few feet away from him, griping Red X by the neck and holding him a few feet off of the ground. "Hello, Robin, it's been awhile, hasn't it?" Slade greeted coolly, as though he wasn't literally holding someone's life in his hand. "I'm sorry that our little reunion couldn't be quite as private as I had originally planned."

Robin felt his breath hitch in his throat as he watched Red X squirm in Slade's hold. Red's smaller hands fought Slade's large hand, desperately trying to loosen the long fingers from his throat. "Let him go, Slade." Robin demanded as he mustered up as much courage as he had at the moment. He sunk into his 'leader mode' and prepared himself to do whatever it would take to assure Red's safety. His good mood from earlier was gone.

"Tell me, Robin, who is this exactly?" Slade asked as he tightened his grip over Red's throat. The question seemed almost casual, as if Slade was being introduced to someone that he didn't already know about. Robin knew that Slade must have known about Red X, or else he wouldn't be holding him by the neck. Slade normally didn't attack anyone without reason. He wasn't one for unreasonable violence. His violence always had some sort of reason to it.

"His name is Red X." Robin answered as he took a step forward and tried to think of the best approach to the situation. If he flung a bird-a-rang at Slade's arm there was a good chance he could hit a nerve and force Slade's fingers to relax. But there was also a good chance that Slade would snap Red's neck then catch the projectile.

"I thought it would be, after all, that was what you named the costume. But I think you're about to get your costume back, once I dispose of the impersonator inside it." Slade squeezed a bit harder and Robin reached forward as he took another step closer.

"Stop it, Slade, don't hurt him." Slade looked over at Robin and loosened his hold slightly on Red's bruised throat. "What do you want?"

"What do I want?" He repeated as a smile crept over his masked face. "Isn't it obvious? I want my little Robin back." _I want to kill my replacement_ wasn't said but it didn't need to be. Robin could read it in Slade's eye and hear it as the poison bubbling under his words.

"No way," Red grunted and Slade resumed squeezing his neck to cut off his voice.

"Slade, stop it." Robin cried out as he drew even closer to the madman. Slade humed to himself as he squeezed again until Robin finally shouted. "I'll do what you want." He seethed as he muttered, "You know I will."

"That's a good bird." Slade loosened his hold a bit as he smiled behind his mask. "But it seems like your…friend," the word was said with nothing but venom, "doesn't want you and me to have the chance to talk and catch up with each other. Far be it for me to deny what might be his dying wish. So, instead, I'll settle for something else. Come here, Robin."

"Robin, don't. Run, run now and—ack!" Red X gagged as the pressure on his throat was increased once more to silence him.

"I'd be quiet if I was you, little thief. That mouth of yours might get you killed," Slade chuckled darkly as Robin stopped a foot in front of him. "And Robin's mouth might save you."

Robin shuddered and kept his gaze on his shoes. That is, until a seemingly gentle hand traced his jaw line and tilted his head back to meet the penetrating gaze of Slade's lonely eye. Robin frowned and bit his lip—a habit that Slade had always hated—and Slade slid his hand down to Robin's shoulder. Pushing down, Slade coerced Robin to his knees and the Boy Wonder unzipped him with trembling hands.

Red X flailed his legs and squeezed Slade's hand harder as he tried to protest any way he could besides talking; he was a little short on air to be able to talk. But Red X was ignored by both Robin and Slade as Robin hesitantly took Slade into his pouting mouth.

"That's right, Robin, suck me dry in front of your so-called boyfriend." Slade gripped Robin's ebony hair tightly and Robin clenched his eyes shut as he tried to think of a different scenario that wasn't as bad as reality. It wasn't working.

"Bite the bastard." Red X shouted as he squirmed more in Slade's hold. Slade growled and squeezed Red X so hard that even the slightest added pressure would probably break his neck. Red X began to feel extremely light headed and his hands could barely still grip Slade's. Robin looked up at his boyfriend and gasped as Red's left arm slipped off of Slade's arm and hung limply at his side. Releasing his mouthful, Robin started pleading with Slade since he knew that if he got angry it only made Slade angrier.

"Please don't kill him, I'm doing what you want, please, you're a man of your word." Robin looked up at Slade and the man glared as the grip in Robin's hair tightened.

"He's fine, Robin. Finish the job and then you can worry about this thief." Nonetheless, Slade loosened his hold on Red X significantly and allowed the thief a few gasps and pants before he tightened his hold again to the point where Red X had enough air to get by but not enough to talk. He wanted the boy dead. But if Red X died right then it would only be harder to get Robin back to him.

Robin took Slade once more into his mouth and twirled his tongue around the pulsing member as he gagged slightly on the juices already expelling into his hot mouth. Remembering the way Slade liked it and wanting to end this situation as fast as possible, Robin moved his trembling hand up to Slade's balls and began to rub at them as he took more of Slade into his mouth and grazed his teeth lightly other the sensitive anatomy.

"That's the way, Robin, such a good boy." Slade licked his lips and held Robin's head still by his hair. Readying himself for what he knew was about to happen, Robin looked up to Red X once again and even through the mask he could tell that his love's eyes were focused on him and only him as he suffered for him.

Slade began to move his hips and thrust himself into Robin's throat, forcing all of himself into the small mouth until Robin's pink lips touched his hilt. A moan passed through Slade's slits as Robin continued to move his tongue and his gloved fingers against Slade's sensitive areas. And then Slade threw his head back and gripped Robin's spikes forcefully as he spilled his seed into Robin's mouth.

Staying in Robin's mouth until he felt the boy swallow, Slade panted slightly and pulled out of the boy just as Robin went into a choking fit. Slade smirked down at the child on his knees and then threw Red X to the ground as he started to make himself descent once again.

Red X quickly crawled over to Robin's coughing form and placed his hands onto the quivering shoulders as Robin shoved two of his fingers down his throat and forced himself to violently hurl Slade's seed back up. Red X frowned and then glared as he looked up at the towering villain that had taken a few steps away from them.

"You fucking bastard!" Red X lunged at Slade, fully aware that he wasn't as great as a fighter as Slade was but not caring in the least. If he just got one hit on the man then he'd be satisfied. And he wasn't afraid to fight dirty with the man who would deserve any and every cheap shot.

Anticipating the attacks, Slade swiftly moved to the side and grabbed Red X's wrist and collar as he lifted the boy off of the floor once again. This time, he daggled the thief over the edge of the three story building and grinned behind his mask. "Go on; just ask me to let you go. I promise you, I'll do it." He hissed.

"I'm going to tell you to go jump off of a fucking building and never come near Robin ever again." Red X snarled. Slade wasn't in control of his breath this time and he was prepared to make as many snarling remarks about the hated man as he possibly could.

"You're in no position to say anything like that." Slade snarled. "In fact, the only position you are currently in is being at my mercy. I don't know what's stopping me from dropping you and reclaiming my bird." Slade froze as he heard his mask click.

Moving his head slightly, Slade viewed the bo-staff lodged into his mask locks, with a flick of Robin's wrists; his mask would easily be removed. Robin glared at Slade as he gripped his bo-staff even tighter. "I'm stopping you, Slade. Now, let him back on the roof before I expose you as the monster you really are." Robin's voice was nothing but hatred as he continued to glare.

Slade hesitated for a moment before he brought Red X back over onto the roof and dropped him. Landing safely on his feet, Red X quickly ran behind Robin and wrapped his arms over Robin's shoulders to lean his head affectionately against Robin's. Slade's hands shook from rage at his sides as he glared daggers at Red X.

Robin backed away, Red X did so as well, but he kept his bo-staff at the ready to attack again. Slade readjusted his mask and he looked at Red X dead in the eyes. "The next time we meet, Red X, Robin won't be able to save you. And Robin, the next time we meet, be prepared to bury your little friend." With his warning delivered, Slade reached into his belt and pulled out two smoke bombs. Throwing the tiny diversions to the ground, he escaped as the smoke covering did its trick and provided him the fast getaway that he desired for the moment.

When the smoke cleared again, Robin and Red X were still in the same exact position. After a moment, Robin sighed and replaced his bo-staff into his belt. "Red, I'm sorry." Robin started. "This was all my fault—"

"Robin, stop. It wasn't your fault; it was that asshole's fault. Come on, let's go back to my place to talk about this, I think I've had enough fresh air tonight." Red X nuzzled his head tenderly against Robin's head then pulled away as he gripped Robin's hand. "So, how much do I owe the swear jar now?" Red asked, switching to a safer topic for the moment.

"Seven quarters." Robin smirked as he was glad for the distraction.

"Damn it." Red grinned behind his mask. After all, might as well make it an even two dollars.

"Eight." They both leapt from the rooftop toward Red X's apartment.

* * *

Robin sat on Red's bed and listened to the sound of coins being added to the swear jar as he waited for Red to return to him. Robin had already stripped himself down to his shirt and pants. Red entered his bedroom with a comfortingly smile and began to undress as well.

"So, that wasn't exactly the night I had planned but I'm up for taking a rain check." Red tried to joke but Robin only continued to stare at his silver bracelet, slowly trailing his finger over it. "Robin," Red frowned and sat down next to him, placing his hand atop of Robin's. Robin looked up at him, tears gathering in the corners of his blue eyes. Instantly, Red pulled him into a hug.

"I…I can't go through that again, Red, I just can't." Robin shook his head and curled tighter into the embrace. "The things he did to me," he sobbed and bit his lip to distract himself. He wasn't going to cry. Too many tears had been wasted on Slade. "I'm not able to take all of that again. And if he put you through that as well," a louder sob broke through his lips. "I wouldn't be able to live with myself. We have to end this, I'm sorry. I can tell the Titans that I'm needed with Batman and stay in Gotham until Slade leaves again. He should leave you alone. I'm sorry, but I've, I've got to go." Red tightened his arms around Robin.

"You, run away? That's not you, Robin." Red denied as he held his lover. "You're not going to leave this city to Slade and we both know it. If you broke up with me, Slade would still go after me just because he wants to see me dead. And he'd follow you to Gotham. If we broke up, we'd just be by ourselves when we have to face him. You know that it won't help if we broke up and you know I won't let that bastard come between us. We're stronger than that, stronger than him." Red assured. "We can beat him if we stay together. I," Red nuzzled his head against Robin's. "I know it sounds cheesy, but our love is stronger than anything."

"You're right," Robin whispered and lifted his head to show a soft smile. "That was really cheesy."

Red smiled. "Hey, I'm trying."

"Yeah, you are. And you're succeeding too." Robin reassured him as he shifted on Red's lap and placed a gentle kiss to his lips. "Because you're right; if we broke up, then Slade would win and I'm not about to give him that satisfaction; I'm finally happy and I'm not going to let him ruin that."

"I love you." Red whispered as he brushed a kiss over Robin's forehead.

"I love you too." Robin tucked his head under Red's chin.

* * *

A week passed without another sight or hint of Slade. But Robin didn't dare to dream that the one meeting was just a hoax. He knew that he was simply experiencing the calm before the storm. Slade held true to his determination and Robin knew things had only begun to turn bad.

And then he got a phone call.

Robin had answered right away, thinking that the late night call was from Red. But his happy mood instantly turned sour when he flipped his phone open and stared at the one eye looking back.

"Hello, Robin." Slade purred in greeting.

Robin took a deep breath and slowly let in out, relaxing himself as he prepared to talk to Slade. "I told you long ago to loose this number."

"No pleasantries?" Slade asked, mock-hurt in his voice.

"No," Robin responded simply.

"Fine, then we'll cut to the point of this call. I understand that we took a little break in our relationship after that hardship," Robin narrowed his eyes but didn't attempt to correct Slade. It would be as productive as talking to a wall. "But it's time for you to stop fooling around. You're too good for that lowlife thief, Robin," Slade insisted. "You can have someone better and you deserve someone better."

"Oh yeah, someone like you?" Robin asked, venom laced in his voice. "Hate to break it to you, Slade, but if I broke up with Red X and went back to you, I'd be going down a level. Actually, it would be far more than just one level. It would be more like dropping into the negatives." Slade's eye widened but before he had the chance to reply Robin clamped the phone shut, ending the conversation.

Robin turned his phone off for the rest of the night and ignored every incoming call. He went into the main room and played in a video game tournament with his friends. Robin ended up winning, much to Cyborg's disappointment.

* * *

Slade had placed a tracker on Red X during their tryst on the rooftop. He knew where Red lived, who Red really was, and could strike him down at any moment after watching the little thief for a week. He knew the teen's routines and how they intertwined with Robin's. It made him sick to see Robin so at ease with the other. When he had spotted Robin and Red together, both of them out of costume, from afar, he had decided that Red would die.

But he chose not to kill him at any of the opportune moments. At least, not yet. He would kill Red X in time, but only when he was with Robin.

Robin needed to learn who he belonged to. He needed to see Red die in front of him. It was the only way to properly teach him that he was Slade's bird, even if he escaped his cage for a while.


	15. Chapter 15

**Title:** A Darker Shade of Love  
**Author:** Jordan Herbert

**Rating:** M throughout the entire fic.  
**Genre:** Angst/Slash/Drama  
**Pairing:** Sladin with RobinRed X  
**Chapter Summary:** The end. Is it happy or is it sad?

**AN:** Yes, this is the last chapter. Sad, right? …Not the ending, I was talking about the fact that I'm finished with this story. What exactly does it mean for my future writings in the TT fandom? Well, I can assure you I still have plenty of fic ideas. So no worries, I'll still be updating my Sladin One Shots and maybe my Wandering Robin story too. I post more fics on LiveJournal and my own personal website though. Including a few Sladin fics that I haven't posted here. Yeah, I've been holding out on you guys. Sorry. The links are in my profile so don't be too mad, please? Look, here's a fic to make you happy…maybe…

* * *

**It Ends With Red**

It was supposed to be a normal date night. One formed without any heists from Red's part and without any fights to distract Robin. The couple would head out from Red's apartment, go to the beach, and have a picnic in the moonlight.

It turned out to be far from their original plans of romance.

* * *

Robin smiled and grabbed Red's hand, squeezing it. He was glad that he hadn't acted rashly and left Red. He really was happy with him. Red pulled his hand out of Robin's grasp and crossed his arms over his chest, huffing indignantly. Robin frowned for a moment until his smile came back and he chuckled lightly.

"Is this about me refusing to have sex on the beach with you?" Robin asked.

"Romantic atmosphere, homemade packed dinner, and a declaration of my undying love for you," Red stopped walking and his hands fell to his side. "Not even worth a hand job." Robin chuckled and shook his head.

"Did you ever think about how messy all that sand is? We didn't have a blanket, Red." Robin reminded. Red stared at Robin blankly for a moment.

"So, do I still have a chance to see some action tonight?" Red asked, his hope starting to rise slightly, along with something else.

"Romantic atmosphere, a homemade dinner, and a declaration of your love; I think that's worth a little something." Robin's voice dropped to a sultry purr as he wrapped his arms around Red's neck. Red quickly lifted up his mask and connected his and Robin's lips.

"Cute," a voice interrupted. Robin and Red X pulled away with a gasp, Red quickly righting his mask. "If not a little childish." Slade pushed off of the wall he was leaning against, slowly making his way toward Robin and Red.

"Slade," Robin growled and quickly pulled out his bo-staff.

"I didn't come here to fight you, Robin." Slade announced as he crossed his arms behind himself. "In fact, I'm just here to take care of a little pest problem." His eye narrowed threateningly. Suddenly, the rooftop was filled with Sladebots, the robotic minions outlining the roof to stop any chance of running.

Robin grimaced, knowing that they were outnumbered. "You have your communicator on hand, right?" He asked Red.

"Yeah," Red answered as he moved to stand back to back with Robin as the Sladebots all started to move in, trapping the pair in the middle of the circle.

"Good, I want you to use your invisibility setting, get out of here, and call them." Robin ordered as he spun his bo-staff and held it in a ready to attack position.

"First off, the invisibility setting is broken, you knew that already, but more importantly, I'm not leaving you and I never will." Red produced two sharp 'x' shaped weapons. "I'll take the one on the left."

Robin couldn't help but smile slightly. Even in the middle of danger, literally, Red still brought humor into the situation. "Alright, I'll cover your back if you've got mine."

"I'm always watching your back." Red smirked behind his mask and lunged forward at the first Sladebot within striking distance. He lashed out, hitting one then another and slicing open their mechanical stomachs. The defeated Sladebots fell to the ground, wires sparking out of the opened gashes.

"These guys aren't so tough," Red declared confidentially. "I get more of a sweat going fighting you than these robotic wannabes." He spared a glance to watch as Robin took out two Sladebots with one high kick. "This is a snap. We'll take out these goons, double team Mr. Ugly and be home in time to have a nice celebration before the hour is up."

"Don't get cocky." Robin hissed as more Sladebots appeared on the roof. For every one that had been struck down, two more came to replace it.

"Slade needs a new hobby." Red decided as he rushed the oncoming Sladebots.

Robin lifted his bo-staff and brought it down, slamming into one Sladebot's head. He turned to take out another only for his bo-staff to clang against another. Robin's eyes narrowed as he found himself facing off with Slade. He pulled his bo-staff away and leaped backwards, landing a bit away and taking out another Sladebot with his landing. Slade began to circle and Robin fell into step with him, keeping the distance between them.

"I'm not trying to make you suffer, Robin. You're doing that by yourself." Slade's voice was soothing, trying to calm Robin into believing him. "This would be so much easier if you stopped fighting and just came back to me. It's your choice." Robin's eyes narrowed into angry slits. Unsurprisingly, he continued to fight, lunging at Slade with his bo-staff. "That's what I admire you for, Robin; you never choose the easy path."

Robin kicked up from the ground and brought his bo-staff down. But Slade blocked every attack with ease, flinging Robin to the side by using his own attack against him. While Robin had been getting cozy with his boyfriend and fighting the two-bit villains that set their eyes on Jump, Slade had been growing stronger with each day. He had been prepared to do whatever it would take to get his Robin back, even if he had to fight the Teen Titans and the Justice League. He had an army of Sladebots prepared and even if they weren't the strongest things, the amount alone would be enough to tire Superman out after fighting so many.

"You're out of practice when it comes to fighting against a real foe. Don't worry though, Robin, once you're back with me, I'll get you in fighting shape again." Slade commented as he blocked another attack and swiped at Robin's feet, knocking the teen onto his back. Robin rolled and lunged at Slade again with a roar.

"You're full of it you pompous," weapon clanged against weapon, "self-absorbed," a strike, a dodge, "son of a--"

"Robin!" Red cried out in a panic voice. Robin froze in his attack, his eyes widening as he watched Red struggle in the arms of three Sladebots.

"I'm coming, Red!" Robin exclaimed. He took two steps in Red's direction and fell to the ground as overbearing pain filled his body from a strike focused directly on his spine.

"Never turn your back on your enemy, Robin." Slade lectured as he stepped to Robin's side. "That mistake is going to cost you. You're practically paralyzed now, at least, until I strike your pressure point again." He lifted Robin in his arms. "Now watch," he hissed venomously in his ear, "as my Sladebots get rid of this replacement once and for all."

"No," Robin whispered, fear laced in his voice as he struggled as much as he could. It was barely anything. His limbs felt like they had weights tied directly to them. He could only flap his hands and legs a little in desperation. "Red," he moaned as he watched the Sladebots walk over to the edge of the building.

"Red, no!" Robin shouted as the robots hurled the boy off of the building's edge.

"Robin!" echoed through the night for a moment only to be covered by Robin's own distressed cry.

"Red!" Robin's eyes filled with tears, quickly streaming down past his mask. "Red, Red!" Robin continued to shout as he tried to kick and wiggle and do something to get out of Slade's hold.

"That's the end of that chapter," Slade commented victoriously. "Time to start our new one," he purred as he adjusted Robin's body in his arms and began to head toward his lair. Robin cried for Red the entire way, in the arms of the man responsible for killing him.

* * *

Robin sat in the middle of Slade's bed as Slade went around his room and lit a variety of candles. Robin thumbed at the bracelet under his glove, the bracelet Red had given him. He knew that Red X was alive; he had to be. Robin had fallen off of buildings' ledges all the time but he always found a way to survive. Red was resourceful and knew how to live through such tough events; he had survived the fall and would be coming to rescue Robin in any moment.

The bed shift a little as Slade sat down on the edge of it and stared at Robin's back. Robin looked at the door, imagining Red X bursting into the room for a daring rescue; his knight in black spandex. He just had to stay calm and wait for Red to come get him. Red was probably getting the Titans to help. Red was smart, he would figure out a plan to save Robin.

Slade edged forward on his bed until he was a foot away from Robin's stilled form. He unclasped Robin's cape and threw the morphed titanium to the ground. He brushed his fingers against Robin's cheek in a soothing gesture. Robin turned his head away to once again watch the door.

He tried to slide farther away from Slade on the bed but Slade placed his heavy hands on Robin's shoulders. Slade felt him tense immediately. Slade inwardly sighed as he started to try to massage away Robin's stiffness. He figured the boy's back was in pain from the paralyzing strike he had delivered to it. But he didn't feel guilty over the maneuver; all's fair in love and war.

Slade continued to use his large, warm hands to rub at Robin's shoulders and neck. Robin loosened slightly after a while, despite himself—the man had magical hands, damn him—and Slade decided to take that as a good sign. "See, Robin; I can be gentle and romantic, at times." Slade continued to rub Robin's shoulders with a firm yet tender touch. "See all these candles? Each one represents a month I've been without you."

"No, you're not romantic and you're never gentle; you can just fake it sometimes." Robin's voice didn't sound bitter, only hurt and angry. He also thought that the little fact about each candle was a little creepy but it was kind of low on the creepy list of things Slade had done.

Slade's grip tightened immensely on the small boy's shoulders as he became angered by the rude remark. Robin grimaced as he felt like the bones in his shoulders were about to be grinded down into powder. Slade knew his strength and he had control over his power but when he got mad his control tended to slip for a moment. With Slade's strength, a moment could do permanent damage to someone.

As Robin flinched beneath him and a slight cry of pain left his pressed lips, Slade quickly released his grip, moving his hands away from Robin. He knew he should apologize for loosing control of his anger, like he had with Robin so many times before, but he simply couldn't. His pride was too strong and insisted that it was Robin's fault for making him angry in the first place.

Instead of apologizing verbally, he gently rubbed Robin's shoulders once more and then stopped after a short period, trying to physically make up for the pain he had caused yet again by taking it away. "I don't want to hurt you, Robin." He didn't get a response as Robin remained silent so he continued. "My intentions are always good." Slade removed his gloves and sat them on the bedside table.

"I think that's the biggest amount of bull I've ever heard from you." Robin replied coldly as he turned his head slightly just to let Slade know that he was glaring.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Slade's voice raised a notch as his anger started to return again. "I've always--"

"You tried to kill me!" Robin spun fully around as he shouted. "It wasn't you exactly but it was your last measure; your stupid dust. It tried to kill me and almost succeeded."

Slade flinched inwardly; well aware of what Robin was accusing him of. "That was only to be triggered if I ever died. And it wasn't supposed to be that hostile." It had been a mistake, but he wouldn't admit to it.

"But it was hostile, very hostile." Robin glared again. "I was almost beaten to death, Slade. And unlike you, I would have died and stayed dead; I don't make deals with demons."

"The gas agent was based off of your thoughts and feelings, Robin." Slade growled as he began to yell again, matching Robin's level of volume. "It was only as you imagined it would be. Meaning, it acted as much as," Slade's voice hitched in his throat as the realization finally hit him, "as a monster that you thought I would be." For a moment, Robin's masked eyes flickered with sadness as he realized that Slade finally got it. "Because you really think that I'm such a monster." Slade looked up at Robin but the boy refused to meet his gaze.

Turning around again, Robin stared once more at the door and prayed that Red X would come to save him. He really hoped that he had run to tell the Titans. Or even Batman. The National Guard would be good too. He just really wished that someone would barge through the door and take him away before he had to continue to talk with Slade. He couldn't bear the thought of explaining everything to Slade.

"Do you really think that I'm that bad? Is that how you really feel about me?" Slade asked quietly behind Robin. "Did you really think that I would go so far as to kill you?" He didn't get a verbal response but he didn't need to. Everything that had to be said to answer him had already been said a long time ago. All the times that Robin had called him a monster, that he had acted cold to him, that his body language had shouted 'no' in neon letters; it finally made sense. Robin really saw Slade as a murdering bastard.

Slade sighed as he sat still for a moment in silence, contemplating what he should do. He remembered the week he had observed Red X and Robin together. The two had been mask less a lot and Slade had always observed from afar so as not to see Robin's true face.

During their relationship, Slade had always made sure they were both masked at all times, to show some sort of mutuality. Also, Slade had always thought that if he removed his mask then Robin would know the man behind it and would no longer be interested. He had always been a mystery to Robin and he feared that that was all he was to the boy. And once a mystery is solved then it's no longer a mystery.

Slade had also thought that being able to be masked yet still in love showed how much they trusted one another; that they could have their secrets but be assured that their love wasn't one. It seemed like it was the opposite though.

He took a deep breath and removed his mask quietly as he placed it over his gloves on the bedside table. He slid behind Robin again and pressed his lips to the boy's revealed neck, the first act of love that Robin had ever shown Slade and that he had never returned until then. Still, Robin kept his gaze to the door, ignoring his token of affection.

Robin was a bit too stunned to actually turn around; Slade had finally removed his mask and he had just received his first kiss from the man. Turning around slowly, Robin stared into Slade's face. Slade didn't look like he had expected, the goatee and white hair were a surprise since he hadn't realized how old the man was. But he was just as handsome as Robin had always suspected that he would be.

It was a start to something, Robin realized, that Slade had removed his mask willingly. And so Robin smiled a bit as he reached up to his own mask and peeled it off. Slade smiled back and Robin realized that Slade had a really nice smile; if only the man would let people see it more often. But he was glad that he was finally able to see it. After so many years, there was finally a face behind the man.

Slade stroked the side of Robin's face softly. "Your eyes are as beautiful as I always thought they would be." He whispered as he leaned into the boy's exposed throat and kissed him once more. Robin sighed happily despite himself; he had waited for what seemed like an eternity for Slade to finally kiss him. Red X would understand that Robin just needed to know what it felt like and Robin would assure the thief that he had no interest in Slade anymore; he just needed to know. Besides, after everything Slade had done to him, Robin deserved a few kisses. Especially since Robin was planning on them being kisses goodbye.

Grabbing Robin at the waist, Slade slid Robin across the bedspread. He pushed him onto his back and laid him flat on the bed, his head comfortably seated on the pillow. He quickly straddled Robin's hips but kept his weight off of the boy, for fear of hurting him some more by making him feel trapped beneath him.

"Slade, stop before you go any farther; I have a boyfriend and it's not you anymore." Robin protested softly as he held his hands out onto Slade's shoulders to keep him at bay. Slade was being gentler than he normally was but that didn't mean that the past could be forgotten; it would never be forgotten nor fully forgiven until Slade actually apologized for his wrong acts.

Slade's eye narrowed for a moment and then he leaned down, Robin's arms bending willingly because he needed to know, and kissed the boy on the lips. It was warm, gentle, and everything Robin needed when they first started to date. "You know how I feel about you, Robin." Another kiss and Robin finally knew what he had always missed out on. He no longer had to wonder; he had been satisfied and needed no more.

"Why don't you tell me how you feel instead of just assuming that I know?" Robin asked as he pushed Slade up once more. "You've never told me it before."

Slade sighed and looked off to Robin's right, not able to look him in the eyes. "You know that I can't say it. I'm not that type of guy, Robin."

"Then how can you expect to receive it from another? How can you even feel it for someone if you never speak it to anyone?" Robin asked sadly, pitying Slade for a brief moment. "And why don't you try to be 'that type of guy?' Being gentle and romantic isn't anything to be ashamed of. It's a way of showing that you really do love someone and if you can't say it then you need to act more like it."

Slade's hands tightened on his knees as his eye narrowed once more. "You don't have to say something to feel it; action has always spoken louder than my words. And I shouldn't have to change myself to suit you."

Robin sighed. "That's why we can't be together, Slade." Slade looked at Robin and for the first time ever, Robin could see that Slade was hurt by his words. "One of the things I love the most about Red X is the way he holds me in his arms and whispers that he loves me. We can never do that." As an afterthought he added, "And I'm not asking you to change, I just want you to not be so possessive about me; I'm not something you own and the fact that you think you can own me hurts; I'm no one's possession."

"I'll try not to hurt you, Robin, I'll really try. But we can do other things then whispering sweet nothings; better things together wait in our future." Slade growled as he leaned down to Robin once more.

"Slade, stop—mmphrgh!" Robin began to shove at Slade's shoulders as the man kissed him roughly; completely different from the sweet kiss he had received only a moment ago. Slade ignored the muffled protest and the struggling as he slid one hand behind Robin's head and held him still as he bit the boy's lower lip and then pushed his tongue into Robin's mouth.

Robin began to pound at Slade's shoulders with his fists and bit the invading tongue. Slade gripped Robin's hair roughly, tugging at it and growled dangerously until Robin released his tongue with a gasp of pain and fear. Taking the opportunity of the widened mouth, Slade deepened the kiss and slid his hand that wasn't tangled in Robin's dark spikes to slide down the boy's body and work off his belt.

The kiss tasted like hate, anger, and jealousy and Robin felt weak because of it, because of the situation Slade was once again putting him in. As Slade's hand began to work on his zipper, the tears in his eyes spilled over and ran down his cheeks. Not again, it couldn't happen to him again, especially not while Slade kissed him; that was always one of the differences between Slade and Red X. He wouldn't be able to take it again; he couldn't handle being broken by Slade again in an even worse way. Not by the man behind the mask instead of just the monster always present.

He wasn't even able to breathe anymore due to his panic and Slade's tongue in his mouth. Robin half hoped that he would pass out if it meant he wouldn't have to be aware of his surroundings and what was being done to his body. Slade seemed to have noticed his trouble with breathing though so he pulled away from his mouth and started to plant a trail of wet, hard kisses from his jaw to his neck and back again.

"Slade, stop it, stop it, please, I can't take it again." Robin sobbed desperately as he continued to futilely push at the man to get off of him. His pushes only became weaker as he felt his energy draining quickly. His body was too tired with dealing with this situation and was already starting to shut down; like an automatic reaction.

"I'll make you feel so good, Robin." Slade hissed into the crook of his chin as he licked at some of the salty tears. "I'll make you feel better than that damn Red X ever could. I'll give you so much pleasure." Slade's hand moved into Robin's pants and began to stroke Robin. The boy shook his head frantically.

"I don't want it; I never wanted it. Please, just stop." Robin begged as he closed his eyes and whimpered miserably.

The door slammed open suddenly and interrupted the forced situation. Slade released Robin to glare at the figure standing in the doorway. "Get off of my love." Red X hissed dangerously as he stood, ready to fight.

"Red," Robin gasped as he sat up and squirmed off of the bed. He wondered how his lover had made it to the lair without having to fight the Sladebots that had been waiting. But then Robin heard the familiar cries of his teammates and knew that Red had called for backup. He was glad that his friends were fighting off the Sladebots and were there in case they were needed.

He slid off the side of the bed only for Slade to quickly grab Robin again. He lifted him off the floor as he removed a knife from his belt and pressed it to the Boy Wonder's throat. Red X's eyes widened and he moved forward as his hand reached for his own belt.

"Stop right were you are, Red X, or else Robin dies." Slade threatened as he dug the tip of the knife into the soft skin of Robin's neck.

"That's the biggest bluff if I ever heard it. We all know you wouldn't kill him, Slade." Red X's hand hung dangerously over his belt as he hesitated. Nothing was ever certain with Slade and that was always something to be assured of. The man was psychotic and crazy people only played by their own rules "You love Robin too much, in your own, sick way."

"If I can't have Robin, then no one can." Slade declared possessively. Robin shuddered in Slade's hold and Slade pressed a quick kiss to the boy's neck. "Don't worry, Robin, I won't let you die alone. Think of it as being romantic," he hissed. "I'll kill you and then I'll kill myself, and this time, I'd stay dead. It would be just like Romeo and Juliet; the truest love story around." A peck on the cheek from the controlling psychopath sent Robin shivering once more in fear. "We can enter into the afterlife together and we could stay with each other there. Just like real lovers do."

"There's a special place in hell for rapists like you," Red hissed. "And Robin won't end up there."

Slade's eye narrowed dangerously. "I knew you weren't wise, boy, but to call someone holding a hostage something so untrue and low is--"

"Untrue?" Red's eyes widened behind his mask, "Nothing I said was untrue, Slade. Or are you really that crazy that you think Robin wanted it every time you fucked him. Do you think he cried from joy afterwards? Robin has never cried with me. Do you know why? It's because I don't force sex on him; he initiates it most of the time and I never threaten him if he doesn't want to."

"Don't talk about what you don't know." Slade shouted, pressing the knife into Robin's throat, making it bleed slightly.

"Please, Slade," Robin's voice was low and scared. "I don't want to die." He raised his trembling hands up to the arm around his waist and squeezed gently.

Slade swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat and ignored Red's words. "But I don't want to loose you again. It's worse than dieing and I can't loose you anymore." Slade replied desperately. "I can't because," he hesitated for a moment, "I love you." He whispered into Robin's ear as he held onto the boy with a possessiveness that was no longer his right to have.

An eternity seemed to pass before Robin's mouth was wet enough for him to talk again. "I know, Slade, I know." Finally, finally Robin had heard what he really wanted to hear from the man. Only, it was too late. Robin loved another. Those three words had no affect on him coming from Slade. "But I don't love you anymore." Robin felt more tears threaten in his bright eyes again and he knew that they were tears for Slade. "I'm sorry."

"Was it," Slade moved the knife slightly to rub over the small wound with the soft pad of his thumb. "Was it rape, Robin?"

Robin inhaled through his teeth as he whispered, "Yes." Slade audibly swallowed.

Another moment of silence passed before Robin was suddenly dropped to the ground. "Leave, Robin," Slade whispered as he stared at the boy as Robin turned to face him with a shocked expression. "Just leave before I hurt you again. It's apparent that we're done. What we had was one-sided and it's over now." Slade's grip tightened around the knife in his hand, threatening to snap the handle away from the blade.

Robin allowed the tears to spill again as he wrapped his arms around Slade's midsection. Slade wrapped his arms over the small boy and curled over him into the hug. He squeezed Robin tightly before he released his hold on him and watched sadly as Robin turned and ran into Red X's arms, embracing the boy just a moment later but with so much more energy and passion. He was envious of the scene but he barely felt the emotions; he was numb all over.

While Robin retrieved his cape from the floor, Red X watched Slade carefully and grabbed Robin's mask from the bed. He handed it to the Boy Wonder and after Robin placed it rightfully onto his face again, Red X held his lover's hand and squeezed it comfortingly. Robin smiled and followed the thief out of the room. As he turned around to close the door and leave Slade to himself, he smiled at his first love. "Thank you," for finally letting me go. Slade nodded and watched as the door closed and his little bird flew free.

Slade looked at the knife in his hand for a moment and then hurled it across the room and into the wall. There it stayed, stuck and sunken into the wall's plaster as Slade went around the room and knocked over every candle. His latest lair wasn't as solidly built as his previous ones. It would burn down around him.

He sat in his room as it slowly started to fill with smoke and contemplated over Red's words. He had been playing dumb but he knew that what he had done to Robin was rape. Slade was well aware that he had forced the boy. In fact, he knew that he was a rapist from the very start; Robin was underage when he had first taken him. But he had always thought that he could ignore that and just make Robin happy enough to forget the bad times too. Robin had been happy with him once, he should have been happy with him again.

Slade planned for his new life as the flames began to rise and the room slowly grew hotter. Slade decided he would return to his simpler life as being Deathstroke the Terminator. He would return to being a weapon, a hit man for hire, and hopefully never cross paths with his bird again.

Slade rose from his bed and slowly walked out of the collapsing door. Years of planning, so many images of being happy with Robin, all of the time wasted due to his delusions. Robin was happier with his little thief and Slade had to accept that. Besides, he could be happy knowing that he would always be Robin's first love. That would be enough to keep him going in his new, emotionless life.

He would rise from the ashes as someone reborn and no longer craving his fair skinned Robin.

* * *

It was hours later when Robin finally found himself able to relax. He had to explain and apologize to the Titans about not informing them about Slade's return. He had told them how personal things with Slade were and Raven had nodded, understanding what he meant as the others simply thought they understood. With Red X beside him and holding his hand, Robin had decided that his team finally deserved to know the entire story with Slade.

He had started in a soft voice and ended with slight tremors raking his body. Red had stayed by his side as he listened to the tale he had heard once before. Raven had lowered her hood so Robin could see her soft, encouraging smile. Beast Boy and Cyborg had been shocked. Starfire had an empathetic look in her eyes and Robin recalled her own story of how she came to earth. Robin apologized again that night, for not telling them all sooner and for doubting that they wouldn't understand.

But now Robin rested in Red's arms, the two of them naked under Red's sheet. "I love you," Red whispered. Robin smiled as his heart sped up at hearing the words. That was the reaction that made those three words worthwhile.

"I love you too." Robin nuzzled at Red's throat. Red smiled as he pressed a kiss against Robin's forehead.

"Your nightmare is finally over." Red stated as he stroked softly at Robin's bare chest.

"I feel like it's been over for a while." Robin admitted. "Once I got my knight in shining armor, I knew I would have my happily ever after." He pressed a kiss to Red's palm and then allowed him to continue to gently caress him.

"There's nothing left to stop us from being happy together." Red agreed as his eyes started to droop close. "We can do anything now."

"Yeah, we can. In fact, I wanted to talk to you about that." Robin admitted. "I got a call the other day from Batman."

"Please don't tell me I have to meet him. I'd rather take on Slade again." Red whimpered.

"No, you're safe for now." Robin grinned. "He was telling me that the crime in Bludhaven has risen greatly and the city needs a hero." Red hummed to show Robin that he was still listening even though his eyes were shut. "I was thinking of quitting the Titans and going there to help clean up the crime."

Red's eyes opened and he frowned. "You're leaving Jump City and the Titans?"

"It's time for a change. This city doesn't need me anymore. But Bludhaven needs Nightwing." Robin chuckled at Red's confused look. "I was thinking of getting a new costume and name. Do you like it? I imagined a blue and black costume to replace this one and I was thinking of growing my hair out since it's already started to get long."

"Nightwing," Red smiled, "Sounds hot. But are you trying to get a new identity in case Slade ever came back?" Red asked.

"No," Robin shook his head. "I think Slade returning is unlikely."

Red nodded and swallowed. "So, how much longer do I have to be with you until you moved?"

"Well, I already found an apartment in Bludhaven but I'm afraid it's really big. Too big for just one person to live in," Robin smirked. "I was hoping to have a little company, maybe a familiar face to always be there for me?"

Red grinned and pressed a kiss to Robin's lips. "I was just thinking that a change in scenery would do wonders for me. So what is Bludhaven like?" He asked, closing his eyes.

"A bit better than Gotham," Robin admitted.

"I guess they don't need any more thieves over there then. I suppose I'll just have to be a kept man. Or I could take on the mantel of Robin and be your side kick." He chuckled only to yawn widely. "Man, hanging onto a windowpane for your life with one hand really makes a guy tired." He mumbled as he started to drift asleep. "Good thing the Titans were programmed as speed dial two on my communicator."

Robin chuckled softly and rolled onto his side, snuggling closer against Red's body. "Go to sleep, hero, you deserved it."

"We didn't get to have sex yet. We just got naked, haven't even started." Red complained.

"We can have sex in the morning." Robin promised and kissed Red's chest. "Now go to sleep." He didn't have to say it twice. It was apparent that Red's adrenalin had worn off awhile ago and he would be in a deep sleep within moments.

Robin closed his eyes as he started to drift off as well. Something suddenly struck Robin and he couldn't hold back a smile as he reached over and gripped Red's hand. This story started with Red X and it finished with him too.


End file.
